State of the Sector
Community-based organizations providing our fundamental support system are under significant strain with unprecedented demand for services. Despite more and more people living in Toronto, fewer of them are donating to charities, but there seems to be a greater willingness to volunteer.
These organizations are best positioned to lead us through change towards a better future. Remember that you can help them help your vulnerable neighbours. Consider volunteering, donating if you can, and asking your elected officials to boost core funding and strengthen systems to address the endemic income inequality.
Most nonprofit organizations are facing staffing or volunteer challenges, as well as increased demand, but few can fully meet that demand. Volunteer recruitment is being reported as less of a challenge here than elsewhere in Ontario although it is still down.
- Most Toronto nonprofits (83%) have reported in 2024 that they have experienced an increased demand for their services, but only a few of them (15%) are able to fully meet their demand.xxxii
- Most Toronto nonprofits (84%) are experiencing staffing and/or volunteer challenges, predominantly because of burnout and inadequate wages. As a result, more than half (57%) have scaled back programs, while more than a quarter (27%) have created additional waitlists. One in 10 (11%) has discontinued programs.xxxiii
- Nonprofits in Toronto are less likely to report challenges with volunteer recruitment and retention, with 37% of Toronto-based organizations facing these issues, compared to 50% across the rest of the province. Among those experiencing difficulties, Toronto nonprofits are slightly less likely to view recruiting new volunteers as a significant challenge (68% versus 78%).xxxiv
- Most (58%) of Toronto nonprofits are struggling with their space and locations, facing costs, lack of room for expansion and inadequate space as the biggest barriers. Toronto nonprofits are further limited as they are much less likely to own their own buildings than those in the rest of the province. xxxv
Despite the huge amount of wealth in Toronto, fewer people are donating to charities.
- Fewer than one in five (17%) tax-filers claimed a charitable donation in 2022, down from 26% in 2005, following a trend of two decades of decline.xxxvi
- Overall, 34% of Toronto nonprofits report declining revenue from individual donations in 2024 compared to only 19% reporting an increase.xxxvii
ENDNOTES:
Infographics:
1-4: The resulting behaviours described here are from question 38 which is a list of the consequences of staff and volunteer challenges and refer only to those who report challenges with staff or volunteers, not all nonprofits. The 84% figure is calculated based on the 260 respondents (out of 309 respondents) who were asked question 38, which appears to be asked of those that reported either staffing or volunteer challenges, though it was not clear if it was asked of anyone with staff regardless of whether they reported challenges. Regardless, 88% of Toronto nonprofits who responded to that question gave at least one problem they were experiencing due to staffing and volunteer challenges. Ontario Nonprofit Network (2024). State of the Sector Data Tables External. https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view.aspx?src=https%3A%2F%2Ftheonn.ca%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F10%2FONN-State-of-the-Sector-2024-Data-Tables-External-OCT-2024.xlsx&wdOrigin=BROWSELINK
Data:
- xxxii The question about whether nonprofits are fully able to meet demand is asked of all nonprofits regardless of whether they have experienced increased demand or not. Ontario Nonprofit Network (2024). State of the Sector Data Tables External. https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view.aspx?src=https%3A%2F%2Ftheonn.ca%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F10%2FONN-State-of-the-Sector-2024-Data-Tables-External-OCT-2024.xlsx&wdOrigin=BROWSELINK
- xxxiii The resulting behaviours described here are from question 38 which is a list of the consequences of staff and volunteer challenges and refer only to those who report challenges with staff or volunteers, not all nonprofits. The 84% figure is calculated based on the 260 respondents (out of 309 respondents) who were asked question 38, which appears to be asked of those that reported either staffing or volunteer challenges, though it was not clear if it was asked of anyone with staff regardless of whether they reported challenges. Regardless, 88% of Toronto nonprofits who responded to that question gave at least one problem they were experiencing due to staffing and volunteer challenges. Ontario Nonprofit Network (2024). State of the Sector Data Tables External. https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view.aspx?src=https%3A%2F%2Ftheonn.ca%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F10%2FONN-State-of-the-Sector-2024-Data-Tables-External-OCT-2024.xlsx&wdOrigin=BROWSELINK
- xxxiv Ontario Nonprofit Network (2024). State of the Sector Data Tables External. https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view.aspx?src=https%3A%2F%2Ftheonn.ca%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F10%2FONN-State-of-the-Sector-2024-Data-Tables-External-OCT-2024.xlsx&wdOrigin=BROWSELINK
- xxxv This data is based on question 13: Do you have any of the following space related issues? The value given here refers to people who selected that they had no space related issues.
Ontario Nonprofit Network (2024). State of the Sector Data Tables External. https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view.aspx?src=https%3A%2F%2Ftheonn.ca%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F10%2FONN-State-of-the-Sector-2024-Data-Tables-External-OCT-2024.xlsx&wdOrigin=BROWSELINK - xxxvi Statistics Canada. Table 11-10-0130-01 Summary of charitable donors. https://doi.org/10.25318/1110013001-eng. Note: In 2005, there were 3,673,150 tax-filers in the Toronto CMA, and 943,600 (26%) claimed a charitable donation. In 2022, there were 4,975,070 tax-filers in the Toronto CMA, and 844,030 (17%) claimed a charitable donation.
- xxxvii Here, the data was reported in 2024, but the reported period was between April 1, 2023 and March 31, 2024. This is from question 19 of the survey which asks ” What trends are you seeing in your actual revenues?” which is a followup to a previous question that asks ” How has your revenue changed between April 1, 2023 - March 31, 2024?”. Ontario Nonprofit Network (2024). State of the Sector Data Tables External. https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view.aspx?src=https%3A%2F%2Ftheonn.ca%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F10%2FONN-State-of-the-Sector-2024-Data-Tables-External-OCT-2024.xlsx&wdOrigin=BROWSELINK