TRENDS IN PHILANTHROPY

Philanthropy New Zealand is working with Jbwere which is currently finalising a report analysing the changing landscape of giving.

Australian based John Mcleod, co-founder of the Jbwere Philanthropic Services Division, which supports Jbwere's management of more than A$7 billion in charitable assets across Australia and

New Zealand, told Management their report covers trends in philanthropy from all sources including corporates.

In looking at New Zealand corporate giving, Jbwere started with the amount claimed and reported by companies as donations through the tax system.

“We then looked at what proportion this represented for typical companies of their total corporate social responsibility budgets. To check on this 'pro-rata' calculation, we looked at a number of companies which reported both their total budgets and the part of that which was claimed as a straight tax deduction for a donation.”

He says a 2014 BERL report for Philanthropy NZ had suggested for each $1 given as a taxdeductible donation, companies also provided $1.43 in sponsorships and $3.27 worth of in-kind goods and services. "So, a multiplier in support of 5.7 times just the tax-deductible donations.” Another Australian study suggested that multiplier was even larger.

He says that in just quoting the tax-deductible donation value, we’re underselling the level of corporate support.

“All that said, the totals I’m getting still show room for higher corporate support compared to other countries.”

But he says corporates do a lot more than just straight donations which is the only number that the New Zealand tax data shows.

“One example I looked at was Countdown which donated $1.48 million in community donations in 2018 (which is what would be picked up) but it also donated more than $6.3 million in food and facilitated public donation (which is not counted in CSR totals) of more than $1.26 million to the kids’ hospital appeal."

He says the UK, US and Australian reports on corporate philanthropy also include the value of other support provided and so are a broader measure by three to five times (and in some cases 10 times and greater).

Mcleod says this is where CSR or corporate philanthropy is heading “so we'd expect to see much more growth in these other areas of support than straight dollar donations and the skill for charities is thinking about how best they can harness and use this support”. M