Family philanthropy: rewards and challenges

Little is known about what motivates families to give, the pleasure they get from their giving or the challenges they face.

In this paper, NPC and Global Partnership present the results of a philanthropy survey sent to over 600 single and multi-family offices in the UK between March and May 2010. The results offer a rare insight into the philanthropic nature of some of the UK's wealthiest families.

Some key findings from the survey include:

• Giving back to the community and addressing needs are major motivations for family giving, rather than public recognition.
• Most families have had positive experiences of giving, but highlighted some unfavourable aspects including 'tortuous administration' and fear of being 'actively pursued by charities'.
• 85% of respondents with children under 21 involve them in their giving.
• The main criteria for selecting charities are the charity's vision and strategy and whether it is focused on the greatest need.
• Finding information about charities is a challenge, particularly around the measurement of results.
• Nearly 60% of families would find philanthropy advice useful.

NPC conducted this survey together with Global Partnership, a private networking group dedicated to delivering exclusive services and information to international single and multi-family offices.

 Read the full report at the New Philanthropy Capital website.