It means a salary cut of £3,000 in real terms
A new report produced for the Chartered Institute of Fundraising shows that the average salary for fundraisers has not kept pace with inflation.
Average salaries for fundraising jobs in 2022 was £37,700 – a 4% increase on the average salary in 2019 which was £36,300.
The figures come from analysis of around 9,000 fundraising jobs.
The average salary change at senior levels is even more stark, with director and senior executive salaries showing an actual average salary reduction, with jobs at director level in 2022 being advertised at £66,800 compared with a pre-pandemic average of £72,700 in 2019.
When looking beyond fundraising - at all types of jobs in the charity sector – the average salary has seen a 3% decrease in the last three years, with the average salary across 45,000 jobs in 2019 being £35,700. In 2022, the average salary for 61,900 jobs was £34,800.
Other key figures in the report show that for some sectors, there is growth in fundraising jobs, with ‘Arts, Culture, and Heritage’, ‘Education’, and ‘Environment’ all showing 25% or more increase in numbers of jobs posted between 2019-22.
When looking at candidate demand, fundraising jobs in the ‘human rights’ sector had the highest average number of clicks on the apply button in both 2019 and 2022.
Daniel Fluskey, director of policy and communications at the Chartered Institute of Fundraising said:- “Fundraisers do an incredibly important job, and one that is skilled, challenging, and immensely rewarding.
"The figures published today show that, like so many across the charity sector, fundraisers’ salaries are simply not keeping pace with the cost of living crisis and inflation that we are seeing across the UK.
“On average, fundraising jobs posted during 2022 had an average salary cut of more than £3,000 in real-terms from 2019. With the economic performance during 2023, that would figure will have only got worse.
“For fundraising to make the best returns for their charities and cause, as well as continue to deliver the best experience for the public and supporters, it is essential that fundraisers are properly recognised, appreciated, and supported.
“While for many charities, matching salaries to inflation is simply not possible, I would urge all Boards, CEOs, and senior teams to think about how they can best support fundraisers through a challenging time where many will be feeling burnt out as well as experiencing the impacts of the cost of living crisis themselves.”
