An Endowment Fund involves a single donation (or multiple donations over time) of at least £25,000. This capital is invested and the income earned is awarded in grants. It is a sustainable donation that has a long-lasting impact for the community, providing annual income for grant-making year-on-year.
The Foundation will work with you (and your staff team if desired) to establish the funding criteria of your fund, and will produce annual Impact Reports on the investment and impact of your giving. You can add to the endowment at any point.
We work closely with you to outline the key causes or areas which you wish to support through your philanthropy, summarised in a Fund Agreement.
Depending on how you would like to interact with your Fund the Foundation can present you with proposals from our assessments of applications to your Fund, allowing you to decide exactly which groups you’d like to support. We can arrange project visits before or after awarding your grants to give you a true insight into the difference your Fund is making.
The Community Foundation in Wales currently holds £13.7 million in endowment.
Our Finance, Risk & Investment Board Committee is responsible for managing the Foundation’s investments, ensuring your endowment gift performs as well as possible to reap the best returns for grant-making. Committee members have considerable experience in wealth management, investment, managing and monitoring Fund Managers, and stewarding clients’ funds. Our investment returns have consistently performed above benchmark, thanks to robust and prudent policies and protocols.
The Foundation’s Annual Report & Accounts are audited each year, and our robust governance and management processes are monitored through the UK Community Foundation’s Quality Accreditation programme which is endorsed by the Charity Commission.
The Carmarthenshire Fund was established in February 2017 by a donor wishing to give back to an area that had become very special to her throughout the years. She has always been aware of problems in rural and farming communities, especially isolation and deprivation, so was keen to give back to these communities and set the fund up as an endowment that her teenage son could inherit.
“Setting the Carmarthenshire Fund up as an endowment ensures that communities in this large rural area can benefit from long-term sustainable funding whilst also keeping the family connection going.”
Community Foundation in Wales is a charity. To cover the costs of managing our client's funds, fundholders contribute the following:
For more information on setting up your own fund, please click here.
To discuss further, please contact Katherine Evans, Development & Governance Officer, on 02920 379580 or email [email protected].