Key takeaways from the recently released 2021-22 CASE-Ross survey

Each year, the United Kingdom and Ireland's higher education fundraising community looks to the results of the annual CASE-Ross Support of Education survey for valuable insight into the state of philanthropy in higher education, and to inform key decisions going forwards.

The 2021-2022 report, released on the 3rd May 2023, makes for very interesting reading. There’s plenty of good news in the headlines, but as always, a dig around under the surface reveals some more nuanced insight. First, let’s look at the biggest messages.

The CASE-Ross survey 2021-2022 headlines

This year’s report highlights a continued commitment from donors to UK and Irish HEIs, with New Funds Committed reaching a record £1.49 billion - this is a huge increase of 31% over the previous year. While this figure may have been skewed by two extraordinary gifts to ‘Elite’ institutions, it is still testament to the hard work and dedication of advancement professionals and institutional leaders across the industry.

Here are some of the report’s other key messages:

Funds Received increased by 7%, in line with US and Canadian trends
Underinvestment/disinvestment, coupled with inflation and problems with hiring, have negatively impacted less mature advancement programmes.
The average number of donors to UK and Irish HEIs went up by 3.6%.
The average amount of alumni giving increased by 5%.
The most popular areas for financial support from donors are scholarships and financial aid, academic programmes and facilities.

We asked Karen Cairney, Founder and CEO of Cairney & Co, to dig deeper into the results and share her key takeaways - and here’s what she had to say.

Key takeaway #1 - respondent numbers are down

I was disappointed to see that the number of participants in the 2021-2022 survey had decreased. Perhaps, as workloads continue to grow, fewer people had time to take part, but as the UK and Ireland’s key industry benchmarking report for fundraising and alumni, this report is a critical tool across the sector to demonstrate success and justify investment. We need all institutions to engage with it if it is to serve as an ongoing valuable resource for the sector.

Key takeaway #2 - disparity still lurks behind the headlines

While New Funds Committed may be at an all-time high of £1.49bn, two extraordinary gifts to ‘Elite’ institutions have significantly skewed this number. There are more ‘Fragile’ organisations than ever, and this could be a reflection of the way that wealth is shifting on a wider social level. We shouldn’t get carried away by the headline; instead, we should put these gifts to one side in our minds before conducting a true analysis.

Perhaps this is yet another indication of the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer? We need to address this disparity as a sector, and identify ways to create a more level playing field across all institutions[1] .

Key takeaway #3 - we need to talk about investment in fundraising

We know that there’s a direct correlation between fundraising investment and results. The clusters between ‘Fragile’ to ‘Moderate’ on page 23 seem to flatline. The average number of fundraising staff has gone down by 2%, but investment in ‘Elite’ and ‘Established’ has increased, which highlights more disparity. The case for investment into the more ‘Fragile’ institutions, and building a sustainable development programme has never been stronger.

This will have a short, medium and long-term impact - continuity and investment in advancement staffing are proven factors for sustained success. Our cluster analysis concluded that more institutions than ever are classified as ‘Fragile’, reflecting the precarious nature of fundraising and alumni work when shops are very small.

Caption: Overall mean fundraising investment, from 2014 through to 2022, is slowly on the rise.

We are seeing this fragility on the ground with our clients. Many are struggling to justify and maintain investment in their fundraising, and to give their staff the resources they need to perform well. When investment decreases, so too does the department’s results, and from there it can be difficult to justify more investment - which is exactly what it needs to turn things around.

Fundraising should be a strategic priority which benefits the whole university community. Yes, investment in fundraising is a long-term approach and ROI takes time to be demonstrated, but the positive impact this has extends far beyond the development office. Better fundraising results mean an elevated brand and better brand awareness externally, stronger connections with donors and alumni, better employability and career opportunities, more volunteering and mentoring options, and more scholarships and research through PhD support.

Key takeaway #4 - play the long game, and get buy-in from the top

It should come as no surprise that, where we see investment in fundraising, we also see a return. If your institution is in the ‘Fragile’ through to ‘Moderate’ categories, there are things you can do to sustain investment. It starts with getting buy-in from the top - fundraising and alumni engagement need to be seen as a strategic priority and not just a ‘nice-to-have’.

Building in realistic milestones will help you manage expectations and demonstrate success along the way. If your VC and governors can help you by supporting and communicating this strategic, long-term approach across the institution, and if in times of challenge you can protect the size of your team, then you’ll be on the path to better results.

Want more insight?

At Cairney & Co we are dedicated to helping fundraising and alumni engagement teams of all sizes be the best that they can be, and an integrated approach to fundraising has never been more important. We work across all of the cluster institutions, and wherever you are now - whether an established advancement team or one at the beginning of its journey - there will be key learnings from this report for your institution. We can help you identify and apply them to your unique set of circumstances.

Download the full CASE-Ross report 2021-2022, and get in touch to discuss what the results could mean for your institution.