On 13th October, around 50 representatives from charitable trusts, foundations and funding panels gathered at The Gradel Institute for Charity, for Oxfordshire Community Foundation’s seventh annual Funders’ Forum – a thought-provoking afternoon of discussion, learning and connection sponsored by Cazenove Capital.
A generous anonymous match-funder has agreed to donate £1 for every £1 raised for collective fundraising initiative Raise’25, up to £50k. The match creates a target of £100k to be distributed to 12 local charities that support people from cradle to grave.
Oxfordshire Community Foundation (OCF) is privileged to be managing a new named fund, set up in memory of the late Bob and Alison Michael. The fund will focus on supporting community organisations in South Oxfordshire, where they lived.
Grants totalling £36k have now been made to the hard-hitting charities, which tackle issues as diverse as mental health for young people, genetic health conditions, homelessness, sexual abuse, unemployment, cancer support, loneliness and isolation, and palliative care.
Our generous donors and other funding partners are stepping up to support this fund, which will help people with essential issues such as homelessness, food insecurity, fuel poverty and debt. We now have over £400k in applications, so have increased our fundraising target.
Thanks to the support of a committed cohort of donors and funders, OCF’s first ever round of Thriving in Nature grants were paid in August 2024, with multi-year grants totalling £494k given to 14 small local charities.
OCF is pleased to announce the allocation of £210,000 in grants aimed at fostering mental wellbeing and addressing mental health inequalities across the county, in partnership with Public Health Oxfordshire and West Oxfordshire District Council.
This event brought together local funders to share best practice, explore challenges and showcase some of the solutions that could make them more effective. This included best-practice grant-making, succession planning and investment management.
A panel of inspirational speakers from the football industry was a highlight of B4’s latest networking breakfast, where OCF spoke about the Raise’24 collective fundraising initiative.
We are so grateful to law firm Mills & Reeve, whose Oxford office sponsored an event at Ditchley Park last week to engage local philanthropists, building on the pro bono support and donations they have already provided to Oxfordshire Community Foundation.