Trends in Funding

For most not-for-profits and charities, stable and adequate funding is an ongoing challenge. A quick look at current statistics describes the size of the challenge.

In Canada there are over 170 thousand charities and not-for-profits, 86 thousand being registered charities. In the 2019 tax year there was 10.3 billion dollars in tax receipts issued. These funds were provided to agencies, 79 percent of which have annual revenues less than $500,000. Ninety percent have 10 or fewer full-time staff. (Source: CanadaHelps, Canadian Charity Law, the Canadian Revenue Agency and Statistics Canada.)

It is evident that there is a lot of competition for funding and a lack of staff resources, in most organizations, to acquire funding.

In addition, trends in the demographics and profile of donors are shifting. Stats Canada reports that there were 500,000 less annual donors in 2019 compared to 2010. At the same time the dollars donated almost doubled! How should organizations understand and plan for this shift? It is clear that we have an aging population who regularly give money to charitable organizations. This means organizations who rely on smaller donations from a larger number of committed donors are likely already experiencing a drop in revenues. Other organizations are adjusting their approaches to be able to access more of the funds that are available. This means changing their internal expectations and expanding the range of staff and Board skills.

Another trend is the increase of what are often called “private” or “family” foundations. Being able to network and then meet the proposal writing requirements that results in a grant coming to the not-for-profit can be a challenge. But the donation size and the potential for an ongoing relationship is often worth the effort.

If your organization is ready to make the changes required to create sustainable funding sources, Fundy NfP Consulting can work with you to assess and plan for achieving that goal.