Our strategy at a glance

Our community foundations network covers every postcode in the UK.  We have strong, long-term relationships with our local communities.  When Government, philanthropists and organisations want to improve people’s lives, they can benefit hugely from our neighbourhood-level reach and understanding.

By 2030

We will build relationships with Government and develop new national change-making partnerships, using our expertise and community relationships to improve the lives of people in the UK.

Our 2040 vision

Community foundations have a strong, distinct and widely recognised voice as key advocates to transform people’s lives in their place through philanthropy and giving.

Our network invested £170 million into local neighbourhoods across the UK in 2023.  We have a proud track record of grant making that tackles both emergency need and a longer-term transformational approach in communities.

By 2030

We will continue to evolve our grant making to have a more agile, less restricted and transformative approach to fostering long-term social change.

Our 2040 vision

Community foundations are a key pillar of social infrastructure in thriving local communities, recognised for their role in leading local systems-wide approaches.

Place-based philanthropy is core to the philosophy and practice of the international community foundation network.  Giving back locally, and turning private wealth into community assets, can and should be an engine of positive community change.

By 2030

We will be national advocates for place-based philanthropy.  We will make the case for increasing the value of giving and developing a philanthropic culture that is broader and more inclusive.

Our 2040 vision

The landscape of local philanthropy and giving is growing, is more accessible to more people and is seen as integral to social change.

Through harnessing the power of our collective insights and information, UKCF is uniquely positioned to magnify philanthropic efforts and foster the deeper understanding of community that drives and scales social change.

By 2030

Community foundations will have deepened their use of insightful and well-evidenced analysis of the needs in local communities.

2040 vision

Community foundations are experts in deploying community data and insights to drive social change.

Community foundations are permanently anchored in places, and our endowment model lends itself to a patient, future-focused approach.  Because we think and work generationally, our model can deliver the long-term approach needed to drive lasting and transformational community benefit.

By 2030

Working with communities to shape thriving places, we will be the key advocates for a long-term approach that truly transforms people’s lives.

2040 vision

Through our practice and advocacy, community foundations have catalysed a wider shift towards a longer-term approach to helping communities thrive.

Partnership

We will focus on deep collaboration with partners who can help us to improve the scale and impact of our place-based work and impact for communities.

Inclusion

We will prioritise diversity and inclusion in all of our work, tackling place-based aspects of structural inequity and investing in communities to dismantle it.

Climate justice

We will place climate justice and sustainable environmental stewardship at the forefront of our work, thinking globally and acting locally.