A responsible approach – Environmental, Social and Governance

We are committed to a deep consideration of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) issues and we believe it is the right thing to do; recognising the importance of caring for the environment, addressing social inequity and the need for good governance.

Our trustees now want to embrace a comprehensive review of ESG issues across all areas of our organisation. An ESG working group has been formed to focus initially on these four topics: donors, investments, our own operations, and grantmaking.

First critical activities included understanding ESG language and definitions, identifying any stakeholder demands, and considering operational implications. So far, the working group has developed a new ‘Know Your Donor’ framework to support our fund development policy, and discussed the risk of expecting too much too soon of our grantees. We will have to balance expectations for some of the very small groups we support but will also be able to learn from the experiences of others.

We are examining in depth our current investment holdings and the approach of our three investment managers, including screening, engagement and voting activity, and responsible investment processes.

Our aim is to be at least comparable with other similar Foundations. Our offices will take into account environmental and well-being factors, and good organisational governance continues to be tested by an external Quality Accreditation process.

As good practice emerges, as we learn through considering the operation of our Foundation and as legal and regulatory requirements develop, we will expand this topic. ESG considerations will in future inform all significant board decisions and our operations over the medium term.

Our Values

We are accountable to our community and to our donors and funders, by being transparent in all our communications and activities.

We remain committed to being an organisation that is approachable to donors, grant recipients and strategic partners alike.

We encourage and support innovation; recognising that needs are best tackled through the independent and creative determination of people.

We act with integrity and professionalism at all times.

We are responsible for all we do and have regard to environmental impact, social issues and good
governance relating to ourselves and our investments, our donors, our partners and our stakeholders.