Almost a quarter of charitable giving in England and Wales is received by faith-based charities, according to a new report.
Released this week, the report by think tank New Philanthropy Capital (NPC) showed that almost half of all overseas aid and human rights charities are religious in nature.
The report, 'Faith Matters: Understanding the size, income and focus of faith-based charities', assessed the income and role of charities with a religious foundation. The charities surveyed came from all religious backgrounds, but Christian charities were found to receive over two-thirds of total income.
Christians do most work in overseas aid
Christian charities have 68.6% (£11.2 billion) of the faith sector's income but make up 63.5% of the total number of faith-based charities, the report shows.
Of the 5,763 faith-based charities working in overseas aid, 60% are Christian, followed by generally faith-based charities with 24% and Muslim charities at
10%. Christian groups also head the largest number of human rights charities, at 43% of the total 1,774.
'Vital role' in voluntary sector
Rachel Wharton, Policy and Development Officer at NPC, said: "Faith charities clearly have a vital role in the voluntary sector.
"They raise and spend billions of pounds a year to help millions of people, from international poverty work to food banks looking after people in the local community."
Commenting on why religious charities receive the most income, she said: "There are a number of different possible explanations as to why faith-based charities receive the most income.
"Charities connected to churches have congregations ready to give and there is research to show that people of faith often give more. It is hugely important in many religions to give."
Parliament debate on Christians benefitting society
Last month, a debate was held in Parliament raising awareness of the role of Christian groups in social action. Conservative MP Fiona Bruce highlighted the huge involvement of Christian organisations in all aspects of society, which have been measured through various audits.
Fiona exemplified how Christian groups provide valuable and significant support, often without any public funding, such as marriage counselling for couples, care for the elderly, thus easing the burden on social services, debt counselling to families, job clubs for the unemployed and support for trafficking victims.
"Political parties will come and go in terms of their authority in our communities, but the churches will be there, enduring this century as they did last century and centuries before that, and that is why it is so important that we support them in the way that we do," she said.
Fiona Bruce also said that there needs to be a greater understanding of the role of faith groups in society, and of religious literacy and accommodation.
Rather than the effective privatisation of the Christian faith, she said, Christians who work for faith-based groups need to be allowed the freedom to express their beliefs within that context: "It is, after all, their faith that motivates religious people to work in the first place."
Related Links:
Faith Matters (Think NPC)
MPs praise work of Christian groups in benefitting society