Helping charities to help themselves

Charities, like many small to medium-sized businesses and trusts, rarely receive the level of financial guidance they require so what did we do?

Helping charities to help themselves

As many of you will already know, Cartwright was founded in 1986 with a mission to give small and medium-sized pension scheme clients the level of specialist and bespoke service they deserved. This philosophy has remained at the heart of Cartwright’s operations ever since, and it continues to guide us in everything we do.

Building on that foundation of expert and personalised service, we’ve continued to seek out new opportunities to support clients in a way that is both impactful and cost-effective.

This commitment to both addressing gaps in the market and translating our years of experience and expertise, led us to a natural evolution in our business.

In the past year, we launched Cartwright Charitable Trusts. The purpose of this new business line is driven by our recognition that charities, like many small to medium-sized businesses and trusts, rarely receive the level of financial guidance they require.

Since launching Cartwright Charitable Trusts, we’ve had the privilege of helping two of our new charity clients in very different ways, each reflecting our approach of providing bespoke solutions that directly address the unique needs of our clients.

^{Despite the enormous value that charities provide to our communities, they are frequently underserved when it comes to financial management and investment advice.}

Helping charities to help themselves

Boosting the return

For our first charity, we identified an opportunity to improve their investment strategy. Previously, the charity had held a significant portion of its assets in current accounts, earning minimal interest. This approach was clearly not making the most of the funds available, especially given the ongoing pressures that recent high inflation brought.

After meeting with the charity’s trustees, we worked closely with them to develop a new investment strategy that boosted the expected return by approximately 9% per annum. An impressive increase.

We achieved this by moving away from low-interest current accounts and investing the funds in a way that aligned with the trustees’ comfort level regarding risk.

This strategy not only aimed to deliver more sustainable growth but also offered the trustees peace of mind, knowing that their assets were working harder for their cause.

^{We worked closely to develop a new investment strategy that boosted the expected return by approximately 9% per annum. An impressive increase.}

Reducing the costs

For our second charity client, the challenge was different but equally important.

We took the time to help them fully understand the fees they were paying to their investment managers. Many charities, particularly smaller ones, don’t have the resources or expertise to fully assess the cost structures associated with their investments. Once we had a clear understanding of the fees, we developed a strategy that halved the investment management costs.

This reduction in fees freed up valuable funds that the charity could reinvest into its core mission, ensuring that more money went directly towards the charitable causes they serve.

Helping charities to help themselves

Looking ahead, we’re excited to continue supporting charities and exploring new ways to help them thrive.

Over the next year, we’ll be researching and developing further strategies, including the potential use of emerging technologies such as bitcoin, to help charities increase donations and improve their financial sustainability.

With technology advancing rapidly, we believe there are significant opportunities to harness new tools. Tools that can transform how charities approach fundraising and financial management.

At Cartwright, we remain deeply committed to our clients’ success. We’re proud of the progress we’ve made and look forward to expanding our work in the charitable sector, providing effective financial solutions that help these vital organisations achieve their mission and continue making a difference in the world.

At Cartwright, we remain deeply committed to our clients’ success.

We’re proud of the progress we’ve made and look forward to expanding our work in the charitable sector, providing effective financial solutions that help these vital organisations achieve their mission and continue making a difference in the world.

^{The creation of Cartwright Charitable Trusts is driven by our recognition that too many small and medium-sized charities fail to receive the level of financial guidance they need.}