OCF has just published its audited accounts for the financial year 2016–17, which show that we made £847,017 in grants to 122 different charitable organisations. We also increased our donations by 24% by bringing in several important new partners.
In 2016, OCF launched a new five-point strategy, supporting our mission to inspire local philanthropy and develop community-based solutions to key social problems. Our Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31st March 2017 show the progress made against all five of these objectives.
John Taylor, OCF’s Chair of Trustees, comments in the report: “OCF’s key strength rests in our capability to convene the resources of those who share our commitment to the common good and to ensure collaboration and partnership working are at the heart of everything we do. By fully embracing this approach, I believe OCF can play a central role in finding long-term, preventative solutions to the many problems faced by those in our communities, something that will become increasingly urgent as local government priorities focus only on statutory obligations as further funding cuts set in over the coming years.”
OCF’s key achievements in 2016–17 were:
- Total voluntary income of £1,331,774 – and it is a great privilege again to recognise the contribution and generosity of our donors in this achievement, which now represents the fourth consecutive year where OCF has successfully stewarded more than £1 million in donations
- Community investment of £847,017, compared to £639,615 for the 12 months to March 2016, through a range of grant-making programmes
- CCLA investment returns of 19.3% net of fees, while UK consumer price inflation was at 2.3% over the period
- Research and publication of Oxfordshire Uncovered – transformational in terms of wider stakeholder engagement and continuing OCF’s endorsement as an expert on community needs across the county
- Development of Reciprocate, OCF’s proposition to business, which aligns the CSR activity of its 50 members to deliver a significant contribution to OCF’s community impact, via a coordinated focus on skills-based employee volunteering, work experience and inclusive recruitment practice
- Digital innovation – OCF was the first community foundation in the UK to publish open data on 360 Giving, and we are now partnering with The Good Exchange to pilot a new grant-making platform that enables multiple funders to join together in funding projects and providing match funds for charitable organisations
- Step Change Fund – after a successful pilot (£600,000 in infrastructure grants to 18 charities), the Future-Building Fund has had a change of name and is fully integrated into the OCF suite of grant programmes
- Launch of Charity Triage in collaboration with OCVA and Charity Mentors, to help local charities struggling with strategy, funding or governance; we have dealt with 12 referrals in the last six months.
More information about the effect these investments have had on Oxfordshire’s community will be published in October in our annual impact report.