The rate at which we are paying out grants to our partner charities and churches is more than twice the industry average.
Donor Advised Fund (DAF) payout rate at double the UK average
A criticism often levelled at DAFs is that they allow donors to make charitable donations and receive tax relief as a result but that the money can often sit dormant in DAF accounts. The National Philanthropic Trust (NPT) UK’s DAF Report 2022¹ found that the aggregate grant payout rate in 2021 was 24%, versus 26% in 2020. However, our payout rate² is running at over double that UK DAF average; up to 53.21% in 2022, from 52.84% in 2021. This is a powerful testament to the active generosity at the heart of our mission, which translates into a vibrant community of more than 30,000 generous donors now giving just under £110m every year to equip and strengthen over 6,000 charities, 4,000 churches and 2,300 Christian workers.
This exemplary payout rate complements the strong growth in giving that we recently announced in our Annual Report 2022; we saw giving grow by 10% to just under £110m in 2022, reflecting a resilient generosity in the face of the cost of living crisis. Key to that growth has been a four-year period of sustained investment in Stewardship which has resulted in a stronger organisation, as well as the development of key strategic partnerships.
2022 growth highlights
Highlights from our Annual Report 2022 include:
- Grants to churches and charities increased by 14% to £82.6m
- £44m in grants out on behalf of Philanthropy Services donors
- Grants to Individual Partners grew by 6% to £15.2m with an average monthly support increase of £300 due to Support Raising Training
- £200k of grants given to the Welcome Energy Fund
Donor Advisory Board supports grant making
A particular factor for success in grant making has been the launch of our pioneering Donor Advisory Board service, which supports its philanthropists by creating a board structure to involve trusted third parties. A Donor Advisory Board works with the DAF model so that donors can benefit from the wisdom and experience of their board without the legal duties of trusteeship.
Benefits of the DAF model
Our givers also respond to the ease and flexibility of the DAF model, which manages all your giving tax-effectively in one place and anonymously, if preferred, and allows for more complex gifts of shares, investments and property. Givers can choose between the Giving Account, Donor Advised Fund and Philanthropy Fund depending on their needs. Philanthropists are further supported through a personalised, expert service that can also include social impact investing, legacy and estate giving, international grant making and research services. We also offer three externally managed investment portfolios to those donors who want to build their account balance and give over the longer-term.
“We are amazed by the generosity of our donors and their commitment to the causes they support – they are a testament to the active generosity that is at the heart of our mission. Our part is to be a trusted partner on the giving journey, which includes supporting our major donors and their advisers with a highly personalised service backed up by an in-house team of specialist experts. Our pioneering Donor Advisory Board is also proving instrumental in accelerating the scale and impact of grant making for our philanthropists.” Stewart McCulloch, CEO, Stewardship
Support on your giving journey
Wherever you are on your giving journey, we can help. Follow the links below to find out more.
¹ The National Philanthropic Trust (NPT) UK’s DAF Report 2022
² Stewardship uses The Foundation Center method to calculate its payout rate; each year's total amount of grants made from Stewardship is divided by the total amount of charitable assets (restricted funds) held at the end of the prior year. This method is also used by NPT in their UK DAF Report.
Interview with UCB Radio
In this interview with UCB radio, our CEO, Stewart McCulloch, talked about the active and resilient generosity that our strong DAF payout rate reflects, and what a tribute it is to our community of givers.
Impact
Quarterly email for philanthropists. News, inspiration and guidance to support you on your giving journey.
Ruth Jackson
Ruth is leading the PR and Communications for Stewardship. She joined Stewardship in April 2022.
She has over 25 years’ marketing communications experience across a range of sectors, including higher education, technology and the arts, both business- and customer-facing.
Ruth worships at C3 Church in Cambridge, where she lives with her husband and two teenage daughters. When she’s not at her desk, you might find her rowing on the River Cam, in a ballet class or out for a walk.
She supports causes that are focused on alleviating global poverty and injustice, with a particular interest in supporting vulnerable children.
