Across all our work, we aim to create the conditions for change – be it cultural, organisational, corporate, policy and structural or ‘big system’ change, our work strives to be for the benefit of individuals, particular communities of interest and society as a whole. 

We know that trusts and foundations can play an important role in helping to bring about positive social and environmental change by working strategically; playing a proactive, catalytic role in helping to mobilise others; working across sectors, seeking to be transformative rather than simply transactional; and taking a long-term view.

Previous work

Until 2019, Creating the Conditions for Change was a standalone strand with three core aims:

Social innovation

We supported Social Innovation Exchange (SIX) and Collaborate to work on social innovation. SIX supports – through a global network  – thousands of individuals and organisations, across sectors and industries, to build the field of social innovation. Collaborate is an independent Community Interest Company (CIC) which seeks to promote collaboration between the business, social and public sectors – and between organisations within these sectors – in order to secure better public service outcomes.

The Unusual Suspects Festival was organised by the Foundation in partnership with SIX and Collaborate. This festival was designed to bring together ‘unusual suspects’ – individuals and organisations from youth clubs to ‘think and do tanks’ to multinational corporations, who are making real social change happen by working together in new and different ways.

Strengthening civil society

We co-funded Civil Society Futures with the Baring Foundation, the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, the Barrow Cadbury Trust, the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, Lankelly Chase, the City Bridges Trust and the Lloyds Bank Foundation. It investigated how to maximise the positive effects of civic action and provide a guide on how to release its potential to drive positive change.

We also supported Inspiring Impact, an ambitious ten-year-programme to make high-quality impact measurement the norm for charities and social enterprises by 2022. Inspiring Impact is a collaboration between NPC, NESTA, Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations (ACEVO), Building Change Trust, Charities Evaluation Services (CES), ESS, National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO), and Substance. Its guidance documents and tools include the impact code for charities and Measuring Up! 

Working to advance our own and others’ philanthropic practice

We have supported the policy and research function at the Association of Charitable Foundations (ACF). We have also undertaken work examining the ecology of financing.