Benefact Group, owner of insurance firm Ecclesiastical Insurance, has been named third-largest corporate giver to charity in The Guide to UK Company Giving. The group finished higher in rankings than other corporate giants such as Vodafone Group, Goldman Sachs International, and ASDA Stores.
The guide from The Directory of Social Change reflects the amount of money that companies have donated to charity as well as their in-kind support. Benefact Trust, Benefact Group, and its specialist financial services, including Ecclesiastical Insurance, give all their available profits to good causes.
In a Press release, Directory for Social Change senior researcher Ian Pembridge said that the Benefact Group donated a total of £28.4 million in 2021 and has been a consistently high-ranking funder across multiple editions of the funding guide.
“In the latest 14th edition of The Guide to UK Company Giving, published by the Directory of Social Change, Benefact Group plc has ranked third for UK charitable cash and in-kind contributions… coupled with the clear reporting of its charitable activities, makes Benefact Group plc an excellent example for other companies to follow,” Pembridge said.
Since 2014, the group has given almost £200 million to good causes; it is aiming to reach a cumulative target of £250 million by 2025. Benefact gives through various programs such as the Movement for Good Awards, which accepts charitable nominations from both customers and the wider public. A portion of its profits are also given to the group’s charitable owner, Benefact Trust, for use in helping communities in the UK and abroad. In 2022, the group’s staff gave over £500,000 to good causes via personal grants and matched donations for fundraising and payroll giving as part of the company’s MyGiving scheme.
Benefact Group chief executive Mark Hews said that the more the group grows, the more that it can give and make an even bigger difference in the world.
“We’re delighted to be named third-biggest corporate giver to charity in the UK out of more than five million businesses, especially given our relative size, and our ambition is to be the biggest,” Hews said. “Our combined giving with our parent charity Benefact Trust has helped more than 10,000 charities in recent years, changing countless lives and communities for the better. I was fortunate to visit some of our charity beneficiaries before Christmas and was humbled to see just how much of a difference they truly make to people’s lives and communities. We’re proud to be able to give to good causes year-on-year as well as sharing our wealth of knowledge and expertise, offering practical skills and an army of willing volunteers in our amazing staff.”
The group’s insurance arm, Ecclesiastical Insurance, also gives to good causes directly and provides selected broker partners with a minimum of £2,500 to give to their chosen charities. Over £550,000 has been donated to charities chosen by brokers since the scheme began, with causes ranging from beach cleaning to mental health charities and cancer support.
Ecclesiastical Insurance managing director Richard Coleman noted the support of the insurer’s broker partners and customers for helping its parent group climb to third most charitable firm in the UK.
“As part of Benefact Group’s family of businesses, our charitable purpose makes us so much more than an insurance company,” Coleman said. “We’re proud of our reputation as one of the most trusted insurers in our markets, and of the positive impact we make on society, by giving back all of our available profits to churches, charities and other good causes.”
Ecclesiastical recently reported its full year financials for 2022, with the insurer reporting a £4.8 million loss before tax and £559 million in gross written premiums.
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