The Eq Foundation

Charity Number: 1161209

Annual Expenditure: £0.8M

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Quick Stats

  • Annual Giving: ??822,114 (2023/24 charitable expenditure)
  • Total Donated Since 2015: ??3,000,000+
  • Success Rate: Not publicly available (closed to unsolicited applications)
  • Decision Time: Not specified (multi-year grants awarded strategically)
  • Grant Range: Not specified publicly (must not exceed 10% of recipient's annual budget)
  • Geographic Focus: Primarily UK, with some international projects

Contact Details

Address: Centennium House, 100 Lower Thames Street, London EC3R 6DL

Website: eqfoundation.org.uk

Email: info@eqfoundation.org.uk

Phone: 020 7488 7110

Charity Number: 1161209

Important Note: The foundation is not currently accepting unsolicited applications for funding as they are concentrating on existing relationships.

Overview

The EQ Foundation was established as a registered charity in 2015, founded by John Spiers of EQ Investors. Since its formation, the foundation has donated over ??3 million to carefully selected charities and social enterprises. In the year ending April 2024, the foundation had an income of ??963,860 and made charitable expenditures of ??822,114. The foundation's mission is to support highly effective charities, helping them to scale up their activities when appropriate. Their strategic approach applies investment principles to philanthropy, focusing on evidence-based giving and measurable impact. Beyond direct grant-making, the foundation has developed innovative services for the philanthropic community, including the award-winning Giving is Great platform (which won the 'Philanthropic Initiative Award' at WealthBriefing's awards in 2024) and Tythe.org, a platform for regular donations to climate action charities.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

The EQ Foundation makes a small number of multi-year grants to carefully selected organizations. Their published grant data through 360Giving covers grants awarded from 2014-2022, totaling 267 grants over this period. The foundation does not operate through open application rounds but rather identifies and approaches organizations strategically.

Application Method: Not currently accepting unsolicited applications; operates through strategic identification and existing relationships.

Priority Areas

The foundation's focus has been primarily on:

  • Social Mobility: Programs that improve social mobility, particularly for disadvantaged people
  • Education: Supporting educational opportunities for people from disadvantaged backgrounds
  • Employment: Pre-employment training and job readiness programs for unemployed young people
  • Early Intervention: Programs that intervene early to prevent disadvantage from becoming entrenched

Recent Grantees Include:

  • Sutton Trust (educational inequality and social mobility programs)
  • The Access Project (university preparation tutoring for disadvantaged high-achievers)
  • West London Zone (support for deprived children in inner West London)
  • Spear/Resurgo (pre-employment training for unemployed young people - over 2,500 helped into employment or education)
  • Panathlon Challenge (sports programs for disabled youth - 13,000+ participants annually)
  • African Prisons Project (education and legal support for African prisoners)
  • Centre for Social Justice (research on obesity and poverty)
  • Big Give (matched funding campaigns)

What They Don't Fund

While specific exclusions are not explicitly stated, the foundation's focus indicates they prioritize:

  • Organizations where their grant will represent meaningful impact but not exceed 10% of annual budget
  • UK-based programs (though some international projects are considered)
  • Organizations with proven track records rather than start-ups
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Governance and Leadership

Chair of Trustees: Ian Barlow (appointed 2023)

Trustees:

  • John Spiers (appointed 2014, Founder and Chief Executive of EQ Foundation)
  • Mike Neumann (appointed 2022)
  • Rebecca Sakin (appointed 2024)
  • Zoe Brett (appointed 2022)
  • Plus 3 additional trustees (8 total)

Employees: 1 employee

Governance Standards: The foundation has formal policies for complaints handling, conflicts of interest, financial reserves, internal financial controls, internal risk management, trustee conflicts of interest, and trustee expenses. No trustees receive any remuneration, payments or benefits from the charity.

Leadership Philosophy: John Spiers, the founder, applies investment principles to philanthropy. He has stated that “strong, committed management is the single most important requirement just as it is when selecting an investment,” and then looks at the impact being achieved to assess if it seems appropriate. The foundation developed the 'Giving is Great' project to transform the way people make decisions about philanthropy by giving them data on the actual impact achieved by their donations.

Application Process and Timeline

How to Apply

Current Status: The foundation is NOT currently accepting unsolicited applications for funding as they are concentrating on existing relationships.

When applications were accepted, the foundation operated through:

  • Strategic identification of potential grantees
  • Relationship-based approach rather than open calls
  • Focus on organizations that meet their specific criteria

Grant Criteria (for when applications reopen)

Organizations must meet the following criteria:

  • Size appropriate: Grant will have meaningful impact but will not usually exceed 10% of the organization's annual budget
  • Strong leadership: Quality of leadership is paramount
  • High governance standards: High standard of governance via the board is expected
  • Theory of Change: Programs must be based on a well-considered Theory of Change
  • Demonstrated outcomes: Must be able to demonstrate achieving positive outcomes
  • Long-lasting benefits: Programs should deliver long-lasting benefits
  • Proven impact: Organizations should have significant, proven impact
  • Growth potential: Ambitious growth plans and a potential route to financial sustainability

Decision Timeline

Not specified publicly. The foundation makes multi-year grants, suggesting a thorough due diligence process and long-term commitment to funded organizations.

Success Rates

Not publicly available. Given that 267 grants were made between 2014-2022 and the foundation is now closed to unsolicited applications, success rates for open applications are not applicable.

Reapplication Policy

Not specified. Given the current closed status to unsolicited applications, reapplication opportunities are not available at this time.

Application Success Factors

What the Foundation Values

  1. Evidence-Based Impact: The foundation emphasizes measuring actual outcomes rather than just outputs. They advocate for using frameworks like Theory of Change that track specific indicators, transitioning from output-focused metrics to outcome metrics.
  1. Strong Leadership and Governance: John Spiers has emphasized that “strong, committed management is the single most important requirement” - leadership quality is the paramount consideration.
  1. Scalability and Sustainability: The foundation aims to help effective charities scale up their activities and looks for organizations with ambitious growth plans and a potential route to financial sustainability.
  1. Independent Verification: The foundation prefers “a report produced by a respected independent organisation” including Randomised Control Trials when possible to verify impact.
  1. Strategic Fit: Organizations must align with the foundation's focus on social mobility, education, employment, and early intervention.

Examples of Funded Projects

  • West London Zone: A highly innovative partnership of local organizations working towards the goal that children and young people grow up safe, happy and healthy, aiming to impact 13,000 children over 10 years
  • Spear Programme: Over a decade, helped over 2,500 young people into employment or education
  • Panathlon: Since 1999, run over 800 'mini Paralympic' multi-sport competitions and trained over 3,000 young leaders aged 14-19

Key Considerations

  • The foundation makes a “small number” of grants, indicating highly selective decision-making
  • Multi-year commitment shows they value long-term partnerships over one-off funding
  • The 10% of annual budget ceiling suggests they target mid-sized organizations where their funding can be meaningful but not create dependency
  • Their closed application status indicates they proactively identify organizations rather than responding to proposals

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

  1. Not Currently Open: Most importantly, the foundation is not accepting unsolicited applications. Organizations should monitor their website for any changes to this policy.
  1. Relationship-Based Approach: When funding opportunities exist, this funder operates through strategic identification and relationship building rather than open calls. Building awareness of your organization within their network may be valuable.
  1. Leadership is Paramount: Strong, committed management and high governance standards are the single most important factors. Demonstrating leadership quality and board effectiveness is critical.
  1. Evidence of Impact Required: You must demonstrate proven impact through well-considered Theory of Change frameworks and independent verification where possible. Output metrics alone are insufficient - outcome data is essential.
  1. Right-Sized Organizations: The foundation targets organizations where their grant will be meaningful (suggesting smaller to mid-sized charities) but won't exceed 10% of annual budget (suggesting organizations with budgets likely in the ??500k-??8m range if typical grants are ??50k-??800k).
  1. Multi-Year Focus: The foundation commits to multi-year grants, so demonstrate long-term planning, sustainability strategies, and scalability potential.
  1. Social Mobility Alignment: Ensure your work clearly addresses social mobility, particularly through education and employment interventions for disadvantaged people in the UK, with emphasis on early intervention approaches.

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