Helping good intentions take root
Getting more value from charitable giving

Reaping the rewards of giving wisely

Donating to charity should be enriching and easy, but all too often good intentions face invisible barriers. Without a clear strategy, good intentions can often wilt.

Where to start? How will you find enough time to do it justice? Which are the most effective charities? Who can help you to identify them?

Givingwise can help you to answer these questions and guide you towards better giving. Our services will help you discover your philanthropic vision and make it happen, so you can make a meaningful difference to the issues you care about.

What We Do

Your charitable giving will always do some good, whatever approach you take. But it should also be a rewarding experience for you and your family.

Givingwise’s solutions can be simple or sophisticated. They can include some, or all, of the steps below. The most important place to start though is understanding what matters to you.

Our step by step process

1
Talk
  • Work together to identify your charitable passions and ambitions.
  • Speak to everyone whose opinion you value.
  • Understand the resources you can offer (time, assets, people, etc.) and your wider plans.
  • Explore your giving options, including:
    • One-off and regular donations, legacy gifts
    • Grantmaking and gifting structures (e.g., donor-advised fund, charitable trust or foundation)
    • Volunteering of time and expertise
  • Assess how much engagement and recognition you prefer.
2
Plan
  • Translate your giving ambitions into funding priorities.
  • Identify where funding is most urgent and will make an impact.
  • Create your giving plan.
  • Create (or access) the structures necessary to deliver this plan.
  • Define decision-making processes and governance structures.
  • Coach and support the people involved in your giving.
  • Think about impact of your giving and how to best evaluate it.
3
Connect
  • Identify and connect you to organisations and projects that can deliver your giving plan.
  • If appropriate, create the right platforms to attract funding requests from charities.
4
Support
  • Empower and support people who can steer your giving in the longer term.
  • Provide ongoing support from Givingwell as and when you need it.

Givingwise is here to support every step of your giving journey – from planning your first small charitable gifts, through to strategic, impact-driven philanthropy.

About Us

Givingwise is committed to empowering UK philanthropists to maximise their impact.

Givingwise was established by Sarah Irving in 2022 after a 25-year career in asset management, commerce and charitable grantmaking.

Most recently, Sarah spent eight years at John Swire & Sons, where she led a small team responsible for one corporate and three family charitable trusts, and oversaw programmes awarding over 300 grants each year. As well as working closely with stakeholders at Swire to create collective giving plans, Sarah was responsible for creating and developing fit-for-purpose structures and programmes.

Sarah is also a trustee of Shaftesbury Young People Trust, which funds organisations working to transform the lives of children and young people in London. She sits on the boards of two companies – a 30-year-old family-owned clothing wholesaler and an innovative green agri-tech business. She is a member of the Institute for Family Business and lives in South London with her husband and two children, who get dragged outside for as much fresh air as they are willing to tolerate.

Why Givingwise?

Givingwise offers more than just advice – we love working collaboratively, providing highly personalised, pragmatic support and turning ideas into action.

With broad experience that covers commerce, financial services and philanthropy, we are used to getting complex projects off the ground or working with existing structures. To date, we have funded 1,400 different charities across all sectors and geographies.

Although we’re always happy to work with existing advisors (or find new ones) we are completely independent – untied to any one provider or ideology. We let our clients’ values drive our solutions and make sure the act of giving is fulfilling for all involved.

Givingwise is committed to supporting the UK’s voluntary sector. We donate 10% of all fee income to charities that support disadvantaged children and young people, to help these organisations realise their potential.

Contact Us

Please get in touch if you’d like to discuss a possible project – we’d be delighted to have a chat.

For further information please complete our online contact form.

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