The amount of money garnered by Britain’s top 500 charities last year was 8.9 per cent higher than in 2005, according to new figures.

Research from the Charities Aid Foundation pegged the figure at £10.9 billion, with the biggest fund-raising initiatives reporting incomes growing at around three times the rate for the gross domestic product and the consumer price index.

Spending also grew, increasing eight per cent on the previous year’s figure, although recruitment for charity jobs fell marginally, by 1.8 per cent, the Press Association reports.

However, smaller charities were found to be a third more reliant on voluntary income than the top 500.

Andrew Jones, director of external affairs at CAF, commented: "There is a tremendous amount these charities could be doing to support and enhance the activities of the UK’s smaller charities - collaborations, the sharing of expertise and resources, mergers, sponsorship and joint campaigning.

"In short these charities need to develop the same sense of social responsibility that we now expect from companies."

Earlier this year the CAF announced the launch of a new ethical investment guide - a free publication for charitable organisations designed to ensure that their investments remain in line with their message.