Stonewall's corporate donations more than halved over the past year.
Donald Trump’s ongoing attacks on LGBTQ+ programmes in the US are having a ripple effect across the Atlantic, forcing UK LGBTQ+ charities to operate in what experts describe as an increasingly “hostile environment.”
As the US rolls back diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and freezes funding for international LGBTQ+ causes, UK organisations are already feeling the financial fallout.
Stonewall, the UK’s largest LGBTQ+ charity, says corporate donations more than halved over the past year, falling from £348,636 in 2024 to £143,149 in 2025. Its cash reserves have also dropped sharply, with less than £92,000 remaining, compared with £998,000 the previous year.
Stonewall attributes the decline to a combination of factors, including the cost-of-living crisis, wider economic pressures affecting charitable giving, and a global pushback against DEI initiatives.
Heather Paterson, head of partnerships and development at LGBT+ Consortium, an umbrella organisation supporting LGBTQ+ groups, said Trump’s decision to freeze foreign aid for LGBTQ+ programmes has “undoubtedly affected fundraising efforts in the UK.”
“This is against a backdrop of increasing running costs, a huge growth in support needs and increasing threats of legal challenges,” she said.
Paterson added that in a political climate where support for trans rights and wider LGBTQ+ equality is increasingly framed as controversial, some businesses have become more cautious about where they direct funding. She said funders are also reporting growing levels of negative feedback when they donate to LGBTQ+ causes.
Since returning to office, Trump has enacted a series of measures targeting LGBTQ+ communities, including banning transgender people from serving in the military, shutting down LGBTQ+ youth services and refusing to recognise Pride Month. Campaigners warn these policies are undermining international LGBTQ+ rights programmes and emboldening opposition elsewhere.
In its Annual Report 2024/25, Stonewall noted how the UK was once seen as a global leader on LGBTQ+ rights. “Sadly, that is no longer the case,” the report states.
“Globally, the LGBTQ+ movement, along with a whole range of other social justice and human rights issues, is experiencing a period of significant turbulence, with rights and freedoms being contested – particularly for the trans and non-binary communities. There have been significant reductions, in the UK and around the world, in funding for the movement,” it continued.
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