Message from our new Chair

I have been a member of Hampton Fund’s Board since 2020, chair of our Community Grants Committee over the past two years, and am delighted to be taking on this new role at what is an exciting time for the charity. We have just completed a strategic review which has set our goals for the next three years, the outcome of this work is captured here.

Driving our strategy is a focus on impact. This is a particularly challenging time for those living with hardship in our community, but also for the wide range of fantastic local organisations that support them. Hampton Fund’s response to the recent crises has been to increase the amount we have distributed annually by 30%, so our own resources are under pressure too. The strategy therefore recognises our duty to ensure we are utilising these precious funds as effectively as possible. We hope the reward for our new approach will be progress towards a more empowered and resilient community, one where everyone has an equal opportunity to thrive.

What does the strategy mean in practice?  Some key areas include looking at where the impact of our Individual Grants can be increased, specifically how they can work in tandem with our Community Grants. We will focus on building trusting partnerships with those organisations we support, to understand how we can better help them achieve their goals. Through assessing evidence, we will explore how our funding could be deployed in different ways, to meet areas of unmet need.

There are also changes to eligibility too. The team are already speaking to currently funded organisations about these, as they come up for the renewal of any existing funding.  However, our CEO, Richard Barron, and the team will be more than happy to answer any questions you have about what the changes could mean for your organisation.

Our focus as a Board of Trustees is on effective governance and strong leadership, and we recognise that listening to our community first-hand is an important part of that responsibility. I hope to meet as many local organisations as possible over the coming year to understand as clearly as possible the work that they do.

Finally, I would like to take the opportunity to thank my predecessor, Martin Seymour, for all his hard work and leadership during his five-year term as Chair. I am delighted that Martin will remain on the Board until 2026, we are fortunate to retain his knowledge and wisdom until then.

Adele Kimber

Chair of Trustees, Hampton Fund