Our Vision
Active and vibrant local communities in Herefordshire which are supported by effective,
independent and sustainable grant making and local philanthropic giving.
Our Mission
Through our experience and expertise, we provide grant making and fund management
services. We promote and develop local philanthropy and provide a vital link between
our donors and local needs.
Community Foundations Explained
In Herefordshire, for Herefordshire - that's why the Herefordshire Community Foundation
exists: to make a real difference in and for our county.
TO ENCOURAGE AND SUPPORT LOCAL PHILANTHROPY: The main reason that community foundations
exist is to encourage and support local philanthropy. Giving through a community
foundation is simple, straightforward and offers individual and corporate donors
the satisfying experience of making a lasting difference in their local community.
FOCUSING ON THE NEEDS OF THE DONOR: This focus on the needs and interests of the
donor is important to us. As an individual donor, you can concentrate on the experience
of giving, without the administrative burden attached to setting up a family trust,
or private foundation. For businesses, it is knowing that it is our business to know
about local good causes, so that the maximum value is achieved from your giving.
And you don't have to be wealthy to give through a community foundation - we can
enable individuals and businesses with limited funds to make a difference in a local
community, or to a cause that is important to you.
OUR MISSION: Our business is knowing about and understanding the needs of local communities
and good causes and helping you make your giving more effective. We are the vital
link between local donors and local needs, connecting people with causes that they
are interested in, and enabling donors to achieve far more than they could themselves.
We are independent, "cause neutral" and a registered charity, and our expert knowledge
and advice can help you, as a donor, make a lasting impact in the area that you most
care about.
Maybe the following case study will give you more idea of the ways in which a community
foundation could make your giving more effective...
"After selling my business in 2000, my wife and I set up a charitable foundation.
Our initial giving was not particularly satisfying, not through want of good causes
to support, but it was passive, reactive giving. Then we set up a fund in a community
foundation…A range of different projects were brought to us and I began to understand
a lot more about my local community. We've found projects we didn't know about and
been able to help. We've also come to meet, through the foundation, some extraordinary
people in the community…one of the key strengths of the community foundations is
connecting the "do-ers" with the donors".
This is just one story - and across community foundations in the UK, there are countless
similar stories. We can help you, if you are a company or an individual wanting to
make your regular grant-making or giving more effective; or if you would like to
set up a fund within the community foundation to bring benefits to the communities
and causes that you care about for the long term. Sports, arts, the environment,
young people and children, older people, local villages and our market towns, health,
education, community well-being: whatever your interest, we are there to meet that
interest. We are part of this community of Herefordshire, and like you, we care about
the causes you care about. Over the past seven years, we have distributed nearly
£2 million in grants to good causes in this county. We are proud to have made a difference
- and we can help you make a difference too.
