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The rising cost of living: why investing has never been more important for charities

20 October 2023

&G Charity Funds are actively helping charities and foundations battle the drop in donations that’s being felt across the sector.

The cost of living crisis and the impact of inflation are biting hard, and you’ll know that charities are no exception. Naturally, people’s ability to donate money has fallen significantly since inflation has caused the prices of everyday essentials like food and services to rise so dramatically. But where does this leave charities, a sector that relies on donations to survive? 

Investing for what matters the most

At M&G we help charities of all shapes and sizes manage their own unique investment needs. That could be delivering an income to help them issue grants and contributions to a range of smaller charities on a regular basis. Or they might invest to grow their money over the long term too, drawing down capital as required to fund their own operations, or to grant-fund to other charities. Drawing on over 60 years of hands-on experience in the charities sector, we build relationships with our clients, making sure we understand how we can best help them achieve their goals.

M&G Charifund

Trustees don’t have to compromise on ethics when deciding how to invest their charity’s money. We’re proud that M&G Charifund, our most established and popular charity fund, excludes certain sectors like tobacco and gambling, making it a more comfortable choice for charity Trustees across the board, but particularly those investing on behalf of medical research and physical and mental wellbeing organisations. 

Investing for good in action: our clients

Right now, we’re helping to deliver a more secure financial future for over 8,500* charities across the UK, with total assets under management of around £1.2 billion*. Importantly, we offer investments for every type of charity or foundation, no matter what their size or scale. For example, a smaller, low-profile charity providing grants at a local level has access to the same investment opportunities as a larger national medical research charity.

*as at 31.03.23

How do charities invest with us?

A large group of housing support charities who invest with us use the income and capital from their investments in our funds to help them continue to provide their vital support. They offer a UK-wide network of more than 30,000 units of accommodation, housing 36,000 of the most vulnerable in our communities. 

Hospices tend to use income and returns from their investments for things like recruitment drives and to improve their on-site facilities. Recently, Richard Macey, Director of Charities visited one of the larger hospices that invested with us for many years and was struck by the bright, new and improved waiting room that welcomed him. This included a whole new soft play area for children that wasn’t there before. In conversation with a member of hospice staff, Richard learned that the additional income generated from their investment in M&G Charifund had allowed them to upgrade the waiting room a couple of years ahead of plan.

But smaller charities are just as important. One organisation in particular has been with us for over 40 years. It sets aside around £200,000 a year of income, generated by M&G Charifund, to provide grants to community-based charities across the UK that might otherwise be struggling in today’s economic environment. Such commitment to grant-funding as you’ll know is the very life-blood of the charities sector, and we're proud to play our part in generating the returns required to fuel this ambition.

Working together for a secure financial future

Along with our expert fund managers, Richard Macey has been providing expert support to consultants and investors on all aspects of charity assets for over 20 years. His focus is on collaboration, working together as partners and building strong relationships with each and every client he serves.

Please remember that past performance is not a guide to future performance. The value of any fund's assets will go down as well as up. This will cause the value of your investment to fall as well as rise and you may get back less than you originally invested.

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