Canterbury (England): When it comes to donating to charity, Britain’s small, but fast-growing Muslim community comes out ahead of other religious groups, a recent survey shows. Conducted by ICM, a London-based polling agency, the survey shows that U.K’s estimated 280,000 Muslims report giving more money annually to charity than Christians, Hindus, Sikhs and Jews. The survey, conducted on behalf of JustGiving, an online giving platform, also found a 70 percent rise in giving over the past two years from among Muslims to the charity-giving site. “Our data shows many of Britain’s Muslim communities are at the forefront of digital giving, driving an increase in zakat donations,” said Zarine Kharas, Just Giving’s CEO. In 2012, British Muslims gave $307,046 in donations to a variety of causes through JustGiving, compared to $144,311 in 2010. The donations went to various Muslim charities, including Muslim Aid, Islamic Relief and the Zakat Trust. Muslims also donate to individual mosques and earmark sums of money to non-Islamic causes. In 2010, Muslims in Manchester donated $79,831 to develop a United Reformed Church building in a rundown part of the city.
The ICM survey showed that Muslims say they donate about $567 per person per year, with Jews (also numbering around 280,000 in the U.K.) in second place, with $412 per person annually. Christians gave considerably less, just over $300 per person, and atheists were at the bottom of the list, with $177 donations.
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