A new report has been released to support arts, culture and heritage organisations in maximising their long-term income through legacy fundraising. The Art of Legacies explores the impact and opportunity of charitable gifts in Wills for the arts, sharing market trends and useful tips for organisations on how to start or develop their legacy fundraising.
Produced by Remember A Charity – a consortium of UK charities working to grow the legacy giving market and funded through the Chartered Institute of Fundraising’s RAISE programme, The Art of Legacies explores:
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The impact charitable gifts in Wills are having for arts, culture and heritage organisations at different stages of their legacy fundraising journey.
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The opportunity for income growth from charitable gifts in Wills.
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How fundraising and development professionals at arts centres, galleries, museums, and dance and music charities are approaching legacy fundraising.
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Advice and insights about how arts organisations can grow through gifts in Wills.
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Guidance on building a legacy fundraising strategy, as well as tips on successful legacy fundraising in the arts.
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In-depth case studies from arts, culture and heritage organisations at different stages of the legacy fundraising journey, including The Amber Trust, The Courtyard Centre for the Arts, Dance Professionals, English National Opera, National Museums Liverpool, the V&A, and Young Sounds UK.
Speaking at a webinar launching the guide last week, Emma McCormack, head of legacy giving at the V&A, said:
“Something I often hear is that people do not realise that arts organisations are charities, and therefore don’t think of them when writing their Will. If, together, we can all work towards promoting the message that arts, culture and heritage organisations are indeed charities that need and value gifts in Wills, then collectively, we will all benefit. Because all boats rise with the tide.”
Remember A Charity chair Anaish Yilma-Parmar, head of legacies at the British Red Cross and trustee at Magpie Dance, added:
“We know that arts, culture and heritage organisations have a really special place in people’s hearts. They’re loved in life, and they can be loved and supported in death too. There’s a huge opportunity here for us as organisations to inspire people to support us in this way, building that long term sustainable income for the impact that we all deliver every day.”
Sharing the legacy giving message – a window of opportunity
Research from Legacy Foresight shows that within the top 1,000 UK charities for legacy income, the past ten years have seen legacy income to the arts grow around twice as fast (10% per annum) as the average for that group as a whole (5%)1. What’s more, Remember A Charity’s long-term benchmarking study has found that legacy giving has become increasingly prevalent, with one in five (21%) UK charity supporters aged 40+ saying they have left a gift in their Will, up from 15% in 20182.
We are also now approaching a crucial window of opportunity for legacy growth, with £5.5 trillion3 expected to be passed down from Baby Boomers to the next generation over the coming years. With many people having a deep-rooted passion for the arts, culture, and heritage, this presents an important opportunity to share the legacy giving message with supporters, visitors, and service users alike.
The full report can be downloaded for free here.
