ThinkingGiving: Your journey to better charitable giving

Welcome to ThinkingGiving, helping you to give better.

How do I know my donation is making a difference?
What should I look for on a charity’s website?
Should I support a large, national charity or a small, local one?

Welcome to ThinkingGiving, an education course designed to help individual donors answer these and many other questions.

Whether you’re a long-time but frustrated donor or just starting on your giving journey, ThinkingGiving will give you the tools to maximise your impact and build meaningful relationships with charities along the way.

It provides straightforward, practical guidance to make thoughtful, effective and ultimately more satisfying charitable decisions.

ThinkingGiving is specifically designed for UK-based individuals who make their own giving decisions. Below you’ll find the course trailer and a link to sample the ThinkingGiving course for free!

Visit ThinkingGiving Sample the Course

^{ThinkingGiving is a 3-hour virtual course created by SylviaBrownSmartDonors and the Beacon Collaborative.}

25 November 2021

Why match funding works for philanthropy

One donation, twice the impact – clearly an attractive proposition for any funder. But what is the history of match funding programmes, have they been successful in the UK, and why is the philanthropy sector now waking up to them? Alex Day writes for Beacon in this guest blog.

23 November 2021

The Beacon Forum & the vitality of collaboration.

Why has cooperation been so important in philanthropy throughout Covid? What lessons has the pandemic taught us about giving better? At the end of October, we ran a forum for 145 philanthropists and sector professionals, inspiring discussion on all manner of topics. We reflect on the day and what we learnt.

16 November 2021

Philanthropy Right Now: Democratising Philanthropy – by Marie-Louise Gourlay

How do we bring the voices of those with lived experience of an issue into the discussions of its resolution? In her second column for Beacon, Marie-Louise Gourlay (Managing Director of Europe, The Philanthropy Workshop), reflects on how we can make philanthropy more equitable by increasing the number of voices in the sector’s landscape.

12 October 2021

Is responsible investing “fit for purpose”?

Responsible investing is a phenomenon which is taking over the philanthropy world. With new socially-targeted investment vehicles cropping up each month, there are more options than ever to do good with your investment portfolio. But does responsible investing do what it says on the tin? Sector expert Scott Greenhalgh embarks on a comprehensive analysis…

7 October 2021

Changing Lives; why philanthropy is vital in giving young people a chance.

Many interventions have attempted to address the issue of social mobility, but where broad initiatives have failed, philanthropy has often succeeded. Daniel Flynn, CEO of YMCA North Staffordshire, highlights practical ways philanthropists can change the life chances of young people.

14 September 2021

Philanthropy Right Now: The Power of Community – by Marie-Louise Gourlay

Why is community so important to the philanthropy sector, and how has it developed since the start of Covid? In her first column for Beacon, Marie-Louise Gourlay (Managing Director of Europe, The Philanthropy Workshop), reflects on how increased collaboration has led us to reassess the importance community plays in charitable giving.

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