A bumpy start for Starmer but some (kind of) positive news for charities.

In August 2024, we ran some questions into the CharityTracker to gauge public sentiment towards the new Government. The results revealed a generally muted reception, though there was notable support for increased funding for the non-profit sector.

The backdrop to this sentiment is significant. Within weeks of Labour assuming office, the UK witnessed some of the worst race riots in decades. Combined with the Government’s central message ‘Things can only get (worse before they get) better’, market confidence took a hit. Optimism about personal economic prospects declined, with only 23% of UK adults feeling positive about their financial future, down from 25% the previous month. Given the slow upward trend in market confidence since the unseating of Liz Truss in 2022, we don’t know yet whether this was a blip or a change in direction.

But there is clear attribution: over a third (35%) felt less optimistic about their economic prospects under the new Government, and just 26% felt more represented.

More disunity, more inequality.

There’s less-than amazing news on some of our other metrics. 40% believed the UK will become less united under the new Government (vs 23% more united), and 36% believed it will become less equal (vs 26%), probably informed (in part) by the August riots.

It’s political.

As expected, political allegiance shaped these figures – and they look different if you split by voting intention. But with Labour’s 20-point lead going into the election, this tepid response is hardly the wave of optimism they might have hoped for. If, as some argue, the subdued public mood is all part of the Government’s cunning plan to underpromise and overdeliver, this is nonetheless a difficult place to start from.

More positive news, kind of.

On a positive note, there is clear public support for non-profit funding, with 64% advocating for an increase, and only 5% supporting cuts.

When asked about priorities, mental health and homelessness/housing led the way with 55% support, signalling a public demand for action on these issues, and an opportunity for charities in these categories to strengthen their case. However, international development charities fared poorly, with only 8% prioritising aid for overseas development, reflecting a slowing of public advocacy for aid in recent years.

If on the face of it, support for increased government funding of the charity sector looks like positive news, it might also signal something distinctly ‘unpositive’, such as growing despair around inequality and our economic prospects. This reading aligns with the sharp drop in market confidence we saw at the top of this post. Nonetheless, the research provides valuable public opinion data to strengthen the case for more government funding for charities. 

The conclusion? A mixed bag. There’s no significant boost in market confidence (yet), but public support for charities remains strong and resilient.

Should Starmer decide to bring the third sector back into the fold, he’s unlikely to meet much public resistance.

Methodology

These questions were added to the CharityTracker survey in August 2024. The survey sample is ~3,000 UK adults (aged 18+), with nationally-representative quotas on age/gender (interlocking), ethnicity, region and socioeconomic group.

Audience-centred brand tracking.

Our next-generation CharityTracker is the UK’s leading brand and issue monitoring survey for non-profits – and the only one that offers sophisticated audience segmentation.