2010 Family Foundations Report launched at Cass

November 18, 2010

Report illustrates family foundations leading the way in tackling Big Society issues but UK wealthy need to scale up their giving

The UK’s top 100 family foundations have defied the economic downturn by giving £1.4 billion to charitable causes in 2008/2009 and putting the rhetoric of Big Society into action, according to the third annual Family Foundation Giving Trends 2010 report produced by the ESRC Centre for Charitable Giving and Philanthropy at Cass Business School, City University London, in collaboration with Pears Foundation.

Launched on 16 November 2010 at an event at Cass Business School and attended by representatives from some of the UK’s largest foundations, the report challenges the UK’s wealthiest individuals to follow the example of family foundations by setting up their own and providing a long term commitment to tackling some the challenges faced by society in the current climate of austerity. It paints a vivid picture of the commitment, drive and diversity of approach to giving amongst family foundations in the UK, highlighting many thoughtful and imaginative initiatives.

 The main findings of the report are:

Commenting on the report findings, Trevor Pears, Executive Chair of Pears Foundation, said:

“Family foundations have proved remarkably resilient at a time when state resources are stretched and other forms of giving are under pressure.

The top 100 Foundations set an example of what passion, commitment and strategic thought can achieve – but it’s not enough. We need hundreds more foundations and many more initiatives which show philanthropy working at its best.

We are calling on the wealthiest individuals and families in the UK to be inspired, step up and usher in a new age of long term, committed giving.”

Cathy Pharoah, co-author of the report and Professor of Charity Funding and Co-Director of the ESRC Research Centre for Charitable Giving and Philanthropy, Cass Business School, said:

“You hear a lot of talk about what the Big Society is or isn’t, but family foundations have been quietly taking an active role in our communities for generations. We’ve seen a number of new foundations coming into the top 100 recently, and I’d like to see the trend towards creating family foundations grow in terms of scale, scope and ambition to meet the escalating needs of society.”

Family Foundation Giving Trends 2010 is the third in a series of annual reports tracking trends in the giving of the largest 100 UK family foundations (by giving). It includes tables of the 100 largest family foundations in the UK by annual charitable spending, benchmarked against giving trends in the UK and US.

Amidst increasing interest in the role of philanthropy in building a better society as public expenditure reduces, the report highlights major giving through family foundations.

Many new family foundations have been established over the last couple of decades, largely funded by the successful entrepreneurs of an era of expanding global markets and capital flows. They include the Waterloo Trust, set up by owners of Admiral Insurance; the Volant Trust, set up by J K Rowling; the Foyle Foundation; the Martin Smith Foundation; and the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation.

The report was written by Cathy Pharoah, Professor of Charity Funding and Co-Director of the ESRC Research Centre for Charitable Giving and Philanthropy, Cass Business School, in collaboration with Charles Keidan, Director of Pears Foundation.

More information 

Read the report Family Foundation Giving Trends 2010

Financial Times article