Figures reveal 27% drop in charitable contributions from firms

New figures show that donations to charities by private companies fell by more than a quarter, or 27% over Christmas 2012, compared to 2011.

The survey of 26 charities by Fundraising Ireland found a drop of €500,000 by corporates, down to €1.2m.

However, donations from members of the public fell just 4.3% with 300,000 people giving during Christmas last year.

The CEO of Fundraising Ireland Anne Hanniffy said it is "concerning", but businesses should think about other ways of helping charities.