Salary Guide - Finance roles within Charities

Salaries and Interim Rates for permanent and interim Accountancy & Finance roles - Charities

2024 - Review and Background

It’s no secret that the cost-of-living crisis has hit charities with a triple blow – funding has decreased, costs have gone up, but demand for many services has increased – leaving finance departments with the difficult task of delivering more, with less.

The sector was lobbying hard before the budget for help from the new Labour government to ease some of these pressures. And although there has been a lack of direct financial support, more broadly, charities are welcoming the investment in community services, the NHS and wider public sector which, over time, should reduce the demand and pressure on some service delivery. 

Our clients have been especially positive about the £13bn capital investment funding which will support research and development charities, £115m for the 'connect to work' programme, £6bn in SEND support and £26m for mental health crisis charities.

There are also signs that giving will remain stable, or in some areas such as legacy giving, grow in 2025. In terms of donations, the online channel is steadily growing. Online, in comparison with the government and corporations, public trust in charities remains high, prompting a more positive response to campaigns and an increase in giving directly through a charity's own website.

The demands on CFO’s, then, as we look forward to 2025 will remain focused on delivering more with less. And whilst digitisation and automation have the potential to bring efficiencies and savings, CFOs are also starting to see their roles broaden to encompass topics like ESG and sustainability.

Salary and Interim rate guide

We’ve collated salary and interim rate data to provide an overview of the hiring landscape over the course of the past 12 months.

The widest range in salaries and job rates can be found with senior roles rather than the lower levels, where the market rate prevails. The size and maturity of an organisation can also have an impact on the range of salaries paid for each role. Interim rates are candidate rates plus agency margin.

London Weightings

Many of our clients are based in London and include a London weighting for accountancy and finance staff who work in the capital. 

Weightings for working in the Capital can be found in the non-profit and public sector, where the averages for charities tend to be higher than for other non-profit sectors. However, according to the latest independent data published by the mayor's office, the amount paid falls short of the actual uptick of living costs, particularly for those living in central, rather than outer, London.

How have salaries and rates changed?

In short, remuneration for people working in accounting and finance within charities hasn’t changed much over the past year. Despite some organisations awarding one-off payments or giving small percentage increases designed to help employees with the cost-of-living, pay has remained broadly flat.

Hiring trends for specific roles have remained steady too. The roles we are hiring for in charities are typically newly qualified accountants through to those with 5 years or so post-qualification experience.

For charities of course, the salary or rate is only part of the story. Employees have other reasons to work for a charity, such as a deep belief in the cause, flexibility and work/life balance.

Looking ahead to 2025 – salary and hiring trends

We think it likely that any rises next year will be small increments – we’re not predicting any significant increases in salaries or rates in charities just yet, at least not beyond cost of living increases for some organisations. If the economy starts to grow, interest rates continue to drop and people start to feel better off, this could have a positive impact on donations. All of this may change the outlook for staffing in 2025.

But for now, finance leadership and teams remain laser focused on ensuring that their end users continue to receive the services and support they need, despite the financial challenges they face.

Boston Hale's non-profit Finance recruitment team works with charities, from big name brands to smaller niche organisations, since inception supplying interim and permanent mid to senior finance talent.

Contact Catherine Hegarty for a confidential discussion on hiring into your Charity Finance Department.

Our data was compiled from December 2023 - December 2024 from research conducted with clients, candidates, interims, our database and external sources. It reflects salaries and rates across the UK within the charity sector. Rates will vary according to organisation, employers have unique renumeration strategies and other benefits have not been taken into account. The figures presented are intended as a guide. For specific sectors or regions, please contact our team. Interim rates are candidate rates plus agency margin.