Sep 2007: Issue 30

Welcome to the latest issue of the Philanthropy UK Newsletter. The exciting news to report is the recent launch of our new website which we hope you may have had a chance to visit. It’s been redesigned and updated to reflect the growing interest in philanthropy in the UK, and is now an even more valuable resource for all donors who want to make a difference.

Many new givers want to give effectively, but faced with a growing array of giving options, simply do not know where to start. Now they have somewhere helpful to turn – the Philanthropy UK website provides donors with the tools, the information, and the confidence they need to begin their own giving journey.

The launch of our new website has been made possible by the arrival of Roxanne Clark, our new Newsletter and Web Editor who has been instrumental in the launch of our new website and who we are delighted to welcome.

In this issue

This issue’s feature theme is Community Philanthropy: Thinking… and funding locally. This is inspired by Government’s recent announcement of a range of local community initiatives – such as its new £50m local endowment match fund – which are both refreshing and welcome.

Private giving has a long history of supporting local causes. Indeed, formal private community philanthropy dates back to the Charities Act of 1603. As ACF member Anthony Wilson says, “It’s national and international philanthropy that’s new, not local.” There are many ways we can support our local communities. Historically individuals, families and companies have set up private foundations to channel their funding to areas where they live or where their company is based. Today we also can give locally through community foundations or invest in community development finance institutions, both explored herein.

Elsewhere, we are delighted to welcome Matthew Bishop, New York Bureau Chief of The Economist, who is this issue’s Influential Reader. Matthew will speak about the emergence of ‘philanthrocapitalism’ – a term he coined – at ACF’s annual conference this month. A further improvement we have made is that several sections of the Newsletter – including News from around the sector and Philanthropy in the media – can now be found on our website and in our new fortnightly e-bulletin.

As always, we are especially grateful to our guest contributors, whose efforts continue to enrich these pages. We thank our readers for your support, and urge you to engage further with us. If you would like to comment on this issue, or to contribute an original article, please contact me at editor@philanthropyuk.org.

Best wishes,

Susan Mackenzie: editor