The Wolfson Foundation

Thought Leader The Wolfson

65Foundation years of philanthropy

An independent grant-making charity based in Central London, Wolfson Foundation has awarded some £1 billion to more than 14,000 projects in the UK from Cornwall to the Shetland Islands since its establishment in the 1950s. Chief Executive Paul Ramsbottom explains how academic decision- making is at the heart of what they do, and how they’ve adapted in the face of a global pandemic. Isaac Wolfson’s family came to Scotland as refugees in the 1890s. To give back to Wolfson Foundation have recently allocated society, the Wolfson family founded the funding to Cardiff University to create a charity in the 1950s. Research Centre on mental health. he Wolfson Foundation is a the Jewish Pale of Settlement in the grant-making charity that has 1890s and built a fortune from more Tbeen funding research and or less nothing. In the 1950s the family education in the United Kingdom for wanted to give back to British society, over 60 years. It is now facing one of and so here we are more than 60 its biggest challenges to date: the years later. What we try to do as an effect of the Coronavirus pandemic on organisation is to have all the rigour educational and cultural organisations and analysis and detachment of a across the country. Research Council but to retain that involvement and colour that comes In this interview with Chief Executive with family involvement. Paul Ramsbottom, Research Outreach found out more about the foundation’s How did you come to be involved in mission, what sort of projects it funds the foundation personally? and why, and how it is helping cultural I have been Chief Executive for Paul Ramsbottom is Chief Executive University of Edinburgh, King’s organisations in particular navigate the just over a decade. My academic of The Wolfson Foundation. Buildings campus. ‘new normal’. background is in history. I did undergraduate and postgraduate What is the mission of history at Oxford University, and I’ve of as a pretty standard, although The Wolfson Foundation? always been interested in philanthropy hopefully robust, peer review system. We are a charitable foundation with and the overlap between private money For example, if we have a big research about £900 million under investment. and public benefit. infrastructure proposal to consider, The first thing we did when the storm broke in March was We allocate funding of £30-40 million we go out for peer review and work to make all of our grants very flexible. a year and the aim is to fund research How do you decide which with around six or seven reviewers in and education in British society. Within organisations or projects to fund? the UK and internationally. Then we that we’ve got a couple of ‘sub-aims’; We’ve got a strategic framework and a go through a process of feedback Can you give me an example of the UK. We allocated the funding Are there any other projects that there’s a real emphasis on high-quality thoughtful board, who frame a broad for the applicants, we have an expert a project that you are fond of? to Cardiff for a really imaginative you’ve worked on that you’d like research and education. Perhaps what picture. Within that we are very much panel meeting, and then make Like a lot of organisations, we’ve been proposal: they have created a to mention? makes us distinctive, and what we’re concerned with listening to the sectors recommendations to the board. That concerned about mental health within Research Centre on mental health, There is a neat story in terms of best known for, is that about 85% in which we work, and we talk to the academic model of decision-making British society and what appears to working with partners across Wales, investing in research back in the 1960s; of our funding is for infrastructure: organisations that we’re partnering is one that we then filter out across all be increasing rates of mental health including schools, and using Wales as one organisation we funded was a buildings, refurbishment and with informally and formally through an our areas of working. The three big challenges, especially for younger a giant kind of incubator. It’s too early microelectronics group in Edinburgh equipment. The rest of the funding is anonymised applicant survey. We also types of organisations that we fund people. It’s an area in the UK that to tell its impact but it’s something I which became very successful and for people and includes scholarships, have expert panels, which advise the are universities, schools and cultural appears to have been under-invested feel personally quite proud of. That’s spun out as a company called Wolfson fellowships and bursaries. trustees and the executive team in each institutions (museums, galleries, in terms of research. A couple of such a powerful combination, high Microelectronics that was floated on of the areas that we work. performing arts, heritage organisations, years ago, we announced a £10 quality research in a range of areas the stock exchange about 17 years We were set up by the Wolfson family public engagement with science million initiative. We put together an (from more basic to more clinical ago. When we awarded the funding in the 1950s; Isaac Wolfson was a In terms of what we fund, project by organisations). We also support front- international panel of experts and science) and grassroots partnerships in the 1960s we didn’t want to have refugee who came to Scotland from project, we run what you would think line health and disability charities. asked for proposals from around across Wales. any interest or stake in any commercial

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The foundation has created a special Philanthropy has become even more Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock.com £10 million COVID-19 support fund for important during the COVID-19 pandemic. cultural organisations and health charities.

National Gallery at Trafalgar Square in London, UK. M_Agency/Shutterstock.com aslysun/Shutterstock.com spin-off, but a proportion of those out grants immediately. We made a COVID-19 support fund for cultural profits have been ploughed back record payment in April 2020 that was organisations and health charities that’s into the University of Edinburgh for higher than any other month in the about rapid response, unrestricted What’s the role of philanthropy in society? It may really bright individuals doing PhDs in foundation’s long history. funding that allows those organisations microelectronics. to use flexible money to do whatever be more important in the next two or three years than The more difficult thing has been they need to do to help them through Did you observe increased demand thinking about what you do in terms the winter and to rethink as they’re it has ever been before. for funding as a result of COVID-19? of new funding. The foundation’s reopening to audiences. Regional How do you deal with that? view is that a time of crisis is a time museums, regional performing arts It has been an extraordinary period. to increase our spending. This might venues, frontline health charities: our partners provide the expertise infrastructure and for the other areas The final thing that I’ve been quite When you have a portfolio of partners seem slightly counterintuitive because organisations that we’ve be working and administration. Thirdly, we’re a of our funding there is that question keen for the foundation to do is to you may well have an organisation go investment levels for our endowment with over the last few years have been little bit unusual as a philanthropic still to be asked. We may come up get involved in some of the debates through a challenging time. What’s are bouncing around in quite a eligible to come in for that fund. funding organisation who work directly with a hybrid model where we try and around the role of philanthropy, which unique about 2020 is that almost every dramatic fashion. But as a long-term with government. We have a small do a bit of both: a bit of infrastructure, has become more important during organisation we work with is going funder, the responsible thing to do has What other organisations do you work number of programmes where we’re and a bit of more flexible support. The the COVID-19 pandemic. What’s the through a crisis of one sort or another. been to maintain and even increase with and how do you work with them? actually directly partnering with central other thing that’s quite interesting (and role of philanthropy in society? It may We’ve divided up our thinking in terms our funding. Part of what we’re doing Partnership is hardwired into government. We feel very passionately that goes beyond the Covid response) be more important in the next two of mainstream education organisations is to say to universities and to schools everything. We are always asking: that the best way to have an impact is: what you can do as a funder beyond or three years than it has ever on the one hand and cultural that we hope to be a constant feature are there other funders or expert and achieve outcomes is by working simply paying out money? been before. organisations and health charities on in a moving world. In terms of our partners that we should be working with others. the other. infrastructure-funding programme for with? Sometimes it’s simply other For example, you’ve got convening schools and universities, we want to funders and partnership where we’re What are the future plans for power to get people around the table The first thing we did when the be there responding to their needs, both putting money in and working The Wolfson Foundation? to discuss issues, you can commission storm broke in March was to make and for them to know that whatever together; we’ve worked quite The big and interesting challenge your own policy pieces. You’ve got all of our grants very flexible. We else is happening, and whatever extensively with the Wellcome Trust for us for 2021 will be the extent to your investments and what you do with relaxed a lot of the conditions on other income streams are dropping over the years, for example. Another which we attempt to move our funding those. We’ve just announced that we’re reporting, the time period to claim and changing, Wolfson Foundation is model is one in which we work with an back to where it was in 2019 or how divesting from fossil fuel extraction, W: wolfson.org.uk and so on. For organisations that sticking with it. Alongside continuing expert body such as the Royal Society we keep going with the COVID-19 for example, which, as well as funding, @wolfsonfdn were most challenged (a lot of the funding for schools and universities, or the British Academy. In this case, emergency fund. For universities, environmental research, makes a cultural organisations), we simply paid we’ve also created a special £10 million we are providing the funding while we will still be focused on research statement.