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Esmée Fairbairn Foundation

Website:

www.esmeefairbairn.org.uk
Type:

U.K-based Foundation
Formation:

1961
Chief Executive:

Dame Caroline Mason
Location:

London, United Kingdom
CCEW Charity Number (UK):

GB-CHC-200051
Budget (2021):

Revenue: £5,077,000 ($6,338,324)
Expenses: £56,400,000 ($70,440,780)
Assets: £1,502,000,000 ($1,875,245,498)

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Esmée Fairbairn Foundation is one of the largest Grantmakers in the United Kingdom. It finances left-of-center groups addressing social, educational, and environmental issues. 1 It was launched in 1961 by Ian Fairbairn, a British financier and Olympic rower. 2

In 2021, it financed over 230 left-of-center groups, including Kent Refugee Action Network, UK Feminista, Howard League for Penal Reform, and Asylum Support Appeals Project. 3

The Foundation is a signatory to the United Nations’ Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI) and to the UK Funder Commitment on Climate Change. 4

Finances

Esmée Fairbairn Foundation reported total revenues of £5.077 million ($6.3 million) and total expenses of £58.4 million ($72.5 million) in 2021, and £1.48 billion ($1.84 billion) in total assets. 3

The Foundation’s revenue comes from its investment portfolio. The Foundation owns stock in companies such as Microsoft, Google, Apple, and Tesla. 5

The Foundation is changing its investment portfolio to conform with ESG considerations. It has committed towards net zero carbon by 2040. 6

Background

Esmée Fairbairn Foundation was founded by Ian Fairbairn in 1961. It initially promoted economic research and fellowships, such as the Esmée Fairbairn Chair of Finance at the London Business School. During the 1970s, the Foundation started financing art and environmental issues. 7

In 2004, the Foundation published a research article on criminal justice policy titled “Rethinking Crime & Punishment: The Report.” The report was funded by the British Government. 8

In 2020, the Foundation changed its approach to grantmaking by outlining issue areas rather than responding to charity requests. Its three issue areas are social equity, education, and the environment. 9

In total, Esmée Fairbairn Foundation has allocated £913.3 million ($1.13 billion) in grants since its founding in 1961. 1

Ian Fairbairn

Mr. Fairbairn joined M&G Investments as an investment manager in 1935. He pioneered the unit trust industry and became chair of M&G in 1943. After M&G was sold to Prudential Corporation in 1999, Mr. Fairbairn expanded the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation’s investment portfolio. The Foundation still relies on its investments to generate revenue. 10

Grantmaking

Since 2008, the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation has spent over £600 million ($745 million) funding more than 2,492 groups in the UK. It is focuses on three broad issues: social equity, environment, and art. 11 In 2021, the Foundation awarded £25.9 million ($32 million) to social equity groups, £16.7 million ($21 million) to environmental groups, and £6.6 million ($8 million) to art programs. 3

The Museums Association of UK was the largest recipient of the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, receiving over £16.7 million ($20.7 million). 11 The Museums Association is a left-of-center nonprofit highlighting social and climate issues through the medium of art. 12 Other recipients of substantial Fairbairn Foundation funding include the Soil Association, the Woodland Trust, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, FFCC Limited, Social Finance Ltd., Plunkett Foundation, ClientEarth, Comic Relief, CAF, Resonance, Commonwealth Housing Ltd., Cumbria Wildlife Trust, Plymouth VCSE, Yandorkshire Wildlife Trust. 11

Leadership

Caroline Mason has been leading the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation since 2013. 13 Mrs. Mason is a board member of the UK’s Environment Agency 14 and a board member of Impact Investing Institute. 15 She co-founded Investing for Good, a group aiming to shift the role of investing from profit maximization to social impact. 16

Mason was a career banker and became chief operating officer at Charity Bank and Big Society Capital in 2011. She promoted social investment, declaring “ordinary people generally would like to see their money put to good use,” in an interview with the Guardian. 17

She is left-of-center on social issues and the environment, which shapes much of her work at Impact Investing Institute and the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation. She outlined her three focus areas in a Civil Society article, “improving Our Natural World, tackling injustice to deliver A Fairer Future, and nurturing Creative, Confident Communities so that they play an active role in shaping the places they live in.” 9

References

  1. Esmée Fairbairn Foundation. https://esmeefairbairn.org.uk/.
  2.  “Ian Fairbairn.” Olympedia. https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/37297
  3.  “Esmee Fairbairn Foundation – Charity 200051.” About the register of charities. https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/charity-search?p_p_id=uk_gov_ccew_onereg_charitydetails_web_portlet_CharityDetailsPortlet&p_p_lifecycle=2&p_p_state=maximized&p_p_mode=view&p_p_resource_id=%2Faccounts-resource&p_p_cacheability=cacheLevelPage&_uk_gov_ccew_onereg_charitydetails_web_portlet_CharityDetailsPortlet_objectiveId=A11791807&_uk_gov_ccew_onereg_charitydetails_web_portlet_CharityDetailsPortlet_priv_r_p_mvcRenderCommandName=%2Faccounts-and-annual-returns&_uk_gov_ccew_onereg_charitydetails_web_portlet_CharityDetailsPortlet_priv_r_p_organisationNumber=200051.
  4. Signatories FCCC. https://fundercommitmentclimatechange.org/Funder-Commitment-on-Climate-Change/Signatories%20FCCC.aspx.
  5.  “Our Investments.” Esmée Fairbairn Foundation. https://esmeefairbairn.org.uk/about-esmee/investments/.
  6. “Our Commitment and Strategy to Be Net Zero.” Esmée Fairbairn Foundation. https://esmeefairbairn.org.uk/latest-news/our-commitment-and-strategy-be-net-zero/.
  7. Publisher, Esmée Fairbairn FoundationFollow this. “Esmee Fairbairn Foundation – Issuu Report .” Issuu, April 3, 2011. https://issuu.com/esmeefairbairn/docs/esmee_ar_2010.
  8. Office of Justice. “Rethinking Crime & Punishment: The Report.” Rethinking Crime & Punishment: The Report | Office of Justice Programs. https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/rethinking-crime-punishment-report.
  9.   “Caroline Mason: A New Strategy for the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation – If Not Now, Then When?” Civil Society, October 7, 2020. https://www.civilsociety.co.uk/voices/caroline-mason-if-not-now-then-when.html.
  10. “Remembering Ian Fairbairn.” Esmée Fairbairn Foundation. https://esmeefairbairn.org.uk/latest-news/remembering-ian-fairbairn/.
  11. “360giving GrantNav.” 360Giving GrantNav. https://grantnav.threesixtygiving.org/org/GB-CHC-200051.
  12. “Esmée Fairbairn Collections Fund.” Museums Association, https://www.museumsassociation.org/funding/esmee-fairbairn-collections-fund/.
  13. Ricketts, Andy. “Caroline Mason Appointed Chief Executive of the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation.” Third Sector, September 19, 2013. https://www.thirdsector.co.uk/caroline-mason-appointed-chief-executive-esmee-fairbairn-foundation/management/article/1212599
  14. “Our Governance.” GOV.UK. https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/environment-agency/about/our-governance.
  15. “Dame Caroline Mason.” Impact Investing Institute, March 24, 2023. https://www.impactinvest.org.uk/who-we-are/our-people/caroline-mason-cbe/?_gl=1%2A18sp93z%2A_up%2AMQ..%2A_ga%2AMzIwMjI2MTMwLjE2OTQ0OTQ0MzE.%2A_ga_SGZH7ZJGJZ%2AMTY5NDQ5NDQyOC4xLjEuMTY5NDQ5NDcyOS4wLjAuMA.
  16. “Investing for Good.” Investing for Good. https://www.investingforgood.co.uk/.
  17. “Caroline Mason, Chief Operating Officer Charity Bank.” The Guardian, September 3, 2010. https://www.theguardian.com/business/2010/sep/03/caroline-mason-charity-bank-interview.
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