That work is in addition to the practical challenge of looking after the charitable funds which have to be invested wisely to generate further funds, a role which is in keeping with Jersey’s position as a leading international finance centre.


It is not exclusively about finance, however, and in the case of the Butlin family, Mr Spencer-Nairn has been involved for 40 years in a very practical project to create a recreation centre in St John in Sir Billy’s name. The challenge there was to make what was provided sustainable so that it did not need further charitable support, which is an aim charities have whenever it is possible.


This contributes to a very large, diverse charitable sector where there are many worthy causes and many charities willing to help. However, there has been very little co-ordination of effort in the past, which is where the Jersey Community Foundation comes in.


“There are lots of charities out there that have been funded with absolutely the right objectives and are trying to deliver, but co- ordinating their activities for the benefit of the community is something that's only just coming now,” Mr Spencer- Nairn said. “There was a massive change, I think over the last five years, which was inspired by government trying to improve the charitable process generally. That is not to do with the register of charities or the appointment of a


commissioner; it was due more to government looking at their own giving in the overseas aid area and then starting to try to help private philanthropy in Jersey to improve the mechanism for


first time, which copied the organisations in the US which have for more than a century promoted and co-ordinated philanthropy. Guernsey followed that example some years ago and now Jersey also has the Jersey Charitable Community Foundation. This has six experienced members from the Jersey Charity Founders Forum acting as the initial directors and trustees with a view to widening the management base as it becomes better established. Mr Spencer-Nairn is a director of the foundation along with Nick Kershaw, Heather MacCallum and Wendy Hurford, and the trustees of the associated purpose trust are Katie Le Quesne and Phil Le Cornu.


The government has already passed a law transferring dormant bank accounts to the foundation and they have agreed to allocate other surpluses to the foundation. So far a total of £200,000 a month has been transferred initially from the dormant bank accounts.


“It is a very good basis on which to start something like a community foundation because to get it off the ground it needs to have a purpose on day one, and that needs to be funded. You can't start with nothing and you've got to have a benefactor of some sort to get you up and running, then you should be able to justify the service you are giving as something that the community will support.”


Sir James Knott & Elizabeth (Betty) Gauntlet on their wedding day (Monte Carlo 1932).


charitable work. At about the same time - and maybe partially inspired by them - a number of funders, like that of the Sir James Knott trust, got together and formed a group called the Jersey Funders Group which believes that if we work together we can provide a better service to the community.”


Before the forum was established, there was concern that anyone seeking funds had to approach a number of charities who all wanted different information, and givers worried that several of them might be supporting the same cause, or might not be giving enough. “It was not very effective, Mr Spencer-Nairn said, but by working together they could spread the effort equitably over a number of charities and crucially, make it easier to judge the impact of that support.”


At the same time, Jersey’s government was also looking at ways it distributed their funds from various sources, such as dormant bank accounts, lottery money and several legacies left to the States for the public good. Government felt that this could conflict with their other responsibility of supporting the community through taxation.


They concluded it was better to disassociate themselves from the actual grant-giving process, so they looked around for a suitable organisation but could not find one. They approached the Jersey Charity Funders Group for help to establish something that would deliver what was needed, which is a way of distributing the income it has available for charitable giving.


As a result, a community foundation was formed in Jersey for the


The foundation now sits at the centre of a web of organisations, and it provides the experience necessary to achieve the most impact from the charitable sector’s use of that network. That includes using the government’s charitable funds, and the work of corporate donors, charity


organisers and co-ordinating clusters of groups with similar charitable aims. They can all work more efficiently together. That, in particular, should help the smaller charities with less experience of raising money to become better established.


“It’s a fascinating world, and what’s really important is how it has changed in the last five years,” Mr Spencer-Nairn said of his charity work.


“There has been a massive improvement to avoid duplication and simplify the process so that those in need can get support in a more streamlined way. We can now also help smaller charities and families who may not be able to do the detailed research into groups they might want to support. The foundation can help with the initial research and then do an impact assessment of how well the money was spent. This should also ensure there are no gaps between those givers who already know where there their help is needed, and groups in need who have not yet got on their radar.”


The foundation was only formed last May and it was rushed through when the pandemic worsened. That meant it could help charities impacted by Covid-19 by making two distributions from government’s own charitable funds totalling £400,000, while at the same time individual charities, including those in the funders group, have also given something like £2m in six months.


Mr Spencer-Nairn said that was a good start, but there is plenty more to come.


Beyond 20/20 - Philanthropy Page 11


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