Giving Compass' Take:
- Léa Legraien discusses the lack of understanding of gift aid among major donors and the need to better promote philanthropy to increase understanding of gift aid.
- What can funders do to help increase understanding of gift aid among major donors and the general population to promote philanthropy?
- Learn more about best practices in philanthropy.
- Search our Guide to Good for nonprofits in your area.
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The chief executive and co-founder of a large charity that administers the giving of high-net-worth individuals has said that major donors “don’t understand gift aid,” demonstrating the need to increase understanding of gift aid.
In a session at the Charity Tax Group’s winter conference last week, Prism the Gift Fund CEO Anna Josse said she was “really shocked” at the number of “very significant and generous donors” she deals with who “have never heard about most of the other tax breaks, but don’t even understand gift aid.”
She called for action from the government for increasing understanding of gift aid and charitable tax breaks and promoting philanthropy more generally.
Josse also said that the Labour government’s recently announced tax changes for non-UK domiciled individuals could have a “massive” impact on donations, with many choosing to leave the country.
‘Challenging’ to Increase Understanding of Gift Aid
Josse co-founded Prism the Gift Fund in 2005 to increase the flow of funds into the charitable sector by administering the giving of high-net-worth individuals, groups of donors and established foundations.
Her charity, which recorded an income of £115m for the year ending 30 June 2023, holds around £206m of investment assets, most of which are donor-advised funds.
Josse told attendees that educating those in the sector about the value of gift aid is “really challenging,” adding that some people including herself have been trying to do so for over two decades.
She asked, “What if we had a minister for philanthropy, one person we could all talk to?” adding that a conversation must be started “each time with successive governments.”
“But given other priorities, philanthropy is often at the bottom of the pile.”
About a year ago, Josse said, the Charity Commission hosted a roundtable where participants discussed “some of the tax breaks in America that we’ve been talking about for 20 years,” among other things.
She then asked if the UK could adopt and simplify some of those incentives.
Read the full article about increasing understanding of gift aid by Léa Legraien at Civil Society.