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Winning bids announced for charitable giving and philanthropy research centre

7 November 2007

Details of the successful bids to set up an independent research Centre for Charitable Giving and Philanthropy have been announced by the Office of the Third Sector and its partners in the project.

The Centre, a joint venture with the Economic and Social Research Council, the Carnegie UK Trust and the Scottish Executive, will support high quality research to improve understanding of how and why people give to charity. This will provide an evidence base to help third sector organisations, the Government and businesses to encourage charitable giving.

Professor Jenny Harrow from City University will be the director of the new Centre, which will act as a coordinating ‘hub’.

The Centre will have three ‘spokes’, which will lead on a particular programme of research:

1. Professor Charles Harvey at the Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship at Strathclyde University will lead a programme on individual and business giving.
2. Professor John Mohan from Southampton University and Dr Iain Wilkinson from Kent University will lead a programme on charitable giving and social distribution.
3. Cass Business School and Edinburgh University will be the base for research on institutionalised giving structures, which will be led by Professor Jenny Harrow and Professor Stephen Osbourne.

Phil Hope, Minister for the Third Sector, said:

“Giving is a major source of funding for the Third Sector. Having a dedicated research centre for giving will help us to better understand the motivations behind why people give and the reasons why they choose to give in particular ways. The Centre will provide the sector, and the Government, with the robust evidence it needs to really capitalise on the many successful methods already used to encourage giving.”

Further information on the centre and the successful bids is available from the Economic and Social Research Council.