Charity, they say, begins at home. It may be a cliché most of the time, but in the recession it turns out to be a statistical fact — even for the very rich. A new report on Britain’s largest charitable donations — those worth at least £1 million — says that philanthropists are increasingly giving their money to local community foundations where donors can see where their generosity is doing good.

Despite the economic downturn the report reveals that charitable donations by wealthy individuals and corporations are still holding up relatively well. The difference, according to Coutts Million Pounds Donors Report, is that more donors are giving away their money in instalments and, in some cases, anonymously.

With the rich not quite as rich as they used to be — the Sunday Times Rich List 2009 reported a 37 per cent fall in the collective wealth of the 1,000 richest people in the UK — big donations to charity are down on previous years. The total value of donations worth £1m or more fell by 13 per cent, from £1.618 billion in 2006-07 to £1.405 billion in 2007-08, while the number of donors making commitments at this level fell by only 6 per cent, says the report, by Coutts & Co in association with the Centre of Philanthropy at the University of Kent.

The fall, however, is not as big as might be expected, says the report, and donors are increasingly giving their money directly to frontline charities that will spend it, rather than “banking” it in charitable foundations. “The amount of money that ‘million- pound donors’ have made available for spending directly on charitable recipients has actually increased by over £100 million, from £705 million in 2006-07 to £808m in 2007-08,” it says.

Jessica Sklair, director for research at the Institute for Philanthropy said: “Considering the severity of the recession, we might have expected the drop in the number of donors making gifts worth £1 million or more, and the drop in the value of their donations, to be much greater. It is quite a positive finding, given the present circumstances.”

The report provides an insight into the different ways donors approach philanthropy. Martin Smith, an investment banker, who donated £1 million to the English National Opera, said he wanted to “lead from the front” and his contribution encouraged others to contribute to the restoration of the London Coliseum.

Ben Goldsmith, 29, son of the late Sir James and brother of Zac, supports a range of environmental causes through the family foundation. He said: “My interest in and passion for the work of our foundation does not stem so much from a desire to ‘do good’, but from the anger that I feel at the lack of leadership and action among our policymakers in tackling these issues, and from a deep-seated wish to help bring about change in the right direction.”

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