No single report can tell you the whole story and status of charity fundraising. But when you step back and look across the latest sector research, clear patterns begin to emerge. Recent findings highlight not only how charities have performed but also where the biggest opportunities and challenges lie as we move through the rest of 2026.
Three new reports stand out: Open’s charity benchmarks, Wood for Trees’ state of the sector and Blackbaud’s status of UK fundraising. Together, they paint a picture of a third sector that remains resilient despite continued economic uncertainty, but also where success is increasingly dependent on understanding supporters, making informed decisions and investing in long-term relationships.
So, what can fundraisers take away from this research as we head into the second half of 2026?
Resilience is the headline but it doesn’t tell the whole story
The good news is that fundraising continues to prove remarkably resilient.
Wood for Trees reports overall income increased by 10% in 2025, with regular giving remaining the largest source of income, alongside particularly strong growth in high-value giving, in-memory giving and community fundraising.
Similarly, Blackbaud found that 71% of charities reported either stable or growing voluntary income over the last financial year, while almost two-thirds met or exceeded their fundraising income targets.
That’s encouraging news for a sector that continues to operate against a backdrop of rising costs, economic instability and increasing demand for services.
However, looking beneath those headline figures reveals a more nuanced picture.
Growth is increasingly coming from existing supporters
One of the most interesting findings from the Wood for Trees report is that active supporter files have reduced by around 3%, even though overall income has continued to grow. In other words, many charities are raising more money from fewer active supporters.
That raises an important question. If acquisition continues to be challenging, as many fundraisers would agree it is, how do we maximise the value of the supporters we already have? The research suggests the charities seeing the strongest growth are investing in supporter experience and stewardship.
Blackbaud found that organisations experiencing income growth were significantly more likely to attribute their success to improved supporter experience, investment in fundraising and innovation than simply attracting more donors or increasing gift values.
For me, this reflects a broader shift in fundraising. Retention and lifetime value (LTV) are becoming just as important as acquisition.
Major giving, legacies and regular giving continue to provide stability
Another consistent theme across the reports is the importance of building a balanced fundraising portfolio.
High-value giving continues to perform exceptionally well, with Wood for Trees reporting a 21% increase in income compared with 2024, alongside the highest average major gift seen in the past five years. Legacy and in-memory income also continue their longer-term upward trends.
Meanwhile, regular giving remains the dependable foundation for many charities, providing consistent monthly income despite wider economic pressures.
Blackbaud also highlights the importance of diversified fundraising strategies, with many growing organisations benefiting from a broader mix of income streams.
For charities, this is a useful reminder not to become overly reliant on any single income stream. Diversification continues to be one of the sector’s strongest safeguards against uncertainty.
It’s not about choosing channels, it’s about connecting them
Another headline that will catch plenty of attention is the continued growth of digital fundraising.
Wood for Trees reports digital income increased by 14% between 2024 and 2025, while direct mail income declined modestly over the same period.
It’s tempting to interpret that as a simple shift from one channel to another. I’m not convinced it’s that straightforward.
Many charity audiences remain older than the general population and direct mail continues to play an important role in building emotional connection, particularly around appeals, regular giving and donor stewardship.
From my perspective, this reinforces the importance of joined-up supporter journeys and experiences across channels.
A well-targeted mailing supported by email, digital advertising or social media often performs better than any one channel in isolation. Rather than asking whether direct mail or digital is better, the more useful question is how each channel supports the other within an integrated supporter journey.
Better data leads to better fundraising
Another recurring theme running through all three reports is the growing importance of making informed decisions.
Blackbaud identifies digital maturity as one of the strongest indicators of fundraising growth, yet fewer than one in ten organisations report having a fully integrated technology stack.
Technology alone, however, isn’t the answer. What matters is how effectively charities use the data they already hold.
Understanding who supporters are, what motivates them, how they prefer to engage and where they are in their relationship with your organisation allows fundraising to become more relevant and personal.
Adding trusted consumer insight to first-party supporter data can strengthen audience segmentation even further, helping charities build richer donor personas, identify opportunities for growth and communicate more effectively across different audiences.
As budgets remain under pressure, making every campaign work harder becomes increasingly valuable.
What should fundraisers focus on next?
If there’s one theme that runs consistently through this year’s research, it’s that successful fundraising is becoming less about reaching the largest possible audience and more about understanding the right audiences better.
That means investing time in understanding supporter behaviour, strengthening stewardship, building integrated campaigns, testing and learning continuously, and using data to inform decisions.
None of these ideas are new but they’re becoming increasingly important.
The charities achieving sustainable growth appear to have one thing in common – they’re making deliberate, evidence-based decisions about where to invest their time, budget and effort.
Perhaps most encouragingly, across all three reports there’s little sense of standing still. Despite the challenges facing the sector, charities continue to invest, innovate and adapt – evidence of enduring confidence in fundraising’s long-term future.
