Foundation Impact Report 2025 - Report - Page 25
The future of the
Foundation
Our 45th anniversary year
We’re marking our 45th anniversary in 2026, and we’re going to make it our biggest year ever.
It’s also the final year of our ambitious three-year plan to double in size to an income of £1.2m
which will empower us to do even more to support the charities that matter to you.
We’ll have bigger and better events in 2026 that’ll bring more fun, community spirit and charitable giving
into our lives at Openwork, including our new mass participation walking challenge in the Cotswolds and our
Grand Summer Ball at Hampton Court Palace.
We’re delighted that The Openwork Partnership continues its outstanding support for the Foundation. The
50% uplift on all funds raised amplifies the positive impact we’re able to create for vulnerable people, and
the Group has generously agreed to match 100% of funding for the Grand Ball. That’s in addition to ongoing
operational support as we introduce new technology platforms which will make the charity more efficient as
we continue to grow.
Increasing our reach and impact
We’re pursuing several key initiatives in 2026 to expand
our impact even further. We’re continuing to grow our
grants programme so we can award more funding to a
wider range of charities. This includes expanding our new
multi-year grants, designed to help adviser firms build
strong, strategic relationships with the local charities they
support.
We’ll also be increasing the capacity of the charity so
we can continue to grow in 2026 and beyond. This
means working closely with community peer groups,
networks, champions, and committees across the
Partnership to help amplify the work of the Foundation.
We’ll also introduce new grant management, relationship
management and finance systems to help the Foundation
team work even more efficiently.
We’ll continue to evolve our fundraising events while
introducing new activities. This year’s Overseas Cycle
Challenge will be a shorter distance, closer to home and
more affordable to attract more new participants. We’re
running six network golf days (up from four last year), and
we’re planning a new Peak District challenge following the
resounding success of Yorkshire Three Peaks.
In 2025 we liaised with colleagues to update the
Openwork hospitality and inducement policy for charity
events so we can work more closely with providers
and suppliers within a clear framework. We have also
maintained our £150,000 fund which is available for firms
to use to support setup costs for their own fundraising
activities.
Creating a 2030
strategy
As we work to deliver the ambitious
aims of our 2024–2026 strategy,
including doubling in size, we will also
begin developing the new strategy and
plans that will take us through to 2030.
This year’s focus on introducing new
technology and improving efficiencies is
already helping to lay strong foundations
for that next phase. While the shape of
our 2030 strategy is still to be defined,
we expect to continue growing in
line with the anticipated growth of
the Openwork business group, whose
generous funding makes our work
possible.
Throughout 2026, we will engage closely
with our stakeholders to understand
how we can continue working together
to raise more funds and direct them
where they can have the greatest
impact; supporting the causes and
outstanding charities they care about,
which do such vital work in our
communities.
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