The amount of donations the foundation handled last year has fallen - however is still above the £500m mark

The amount of donations handled by the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) has dropped by more than £30million.

CAF’s annual report has shown that the amount given to good causes by the foundation amounted to £505.3m.

This amounts to a drop of £34million compared to 2016/17, but is still only the second time the amount has exceeded the £500million mark.

Sir John Low, chief executive of CAF, said: "We continued to be humbled by the enormous generosity of the many thousands of people and businesses that choose to support the work of many amazing organisations through CAF.

"We are proud to be able to help them support charities both in the UK and around the world. Their remarkable levels of giving have remained resilient though uncertain times, a reflection of the deep-rooted tradition of generosity, particularly in the UK and USA, our largest markets."

The foundation handles a range of services for charities including bank accounts and payroll giving.