Cumbria Community Foundation - Annual Review 2023

FOLD Did you know that as well as donating to the Foundation’s work now, you can set up a legacy gift that could keep giving back to the community in perpetuity? Death and dying can be difficult to talk about, but by making the Foundation a beneficiary of your will, you would be contributing to a better future for our communities. One option is to allocate your legacy gift to one of our existing funds. Our funds all have different aims and aspirations and one of them may well match your own objectives. Alternatively, you can use your legacy to set up a fund of your own. You can give it your family name - or any name you like - and specify now how you would like the legacy to be spent. And you have the option to nominate family members to have an input on how the funds are distributed once the legacy fund is active. Legacy gifts to the Foundation are exempt from inheritance tax. Anyone leaving at least 10% of their estate in their will to charity benefits from an effective reduction in inheritance tax on the rest of their estate from 40% to 36%. As well as leaving your own legacy, you can set up a fund to commemorate a loved one. Either way, we can help to ensure that your gift has a lasting impact. Former Laurel House Management House committee members and representatives of funded organisations. Trust in the Foundation’s expertise There are thousands of small charitable trusts across the UK that have been set up from legacies or other sources of funding. Many of them have become less active for a variety of reasons. We can help invigorate a trust by assisting with its grant-making, or assuming its management, or taking over a trust completely. We can update its objectives while continuing to distribute grants in the spirit of the original donors’ intentions. The Laurel House Brampton Fund, described on the opposite page, is a great example of a legacy trust being transferred to the Foundation’s management. Talk to andy@cumbriafoundation.org if you have a trust that may benefit from our expertise. A legacy trust that is not resting on its Laurels One recent trust transfer to the Foundation highlights the positive impact that a legacy and trust transfer can make. Laurel House in Brampton was gifted to the senior citizens of the town in the 1960's having been set up by Mrs Mary Cartmell as a warm and welcoming place for older people. For 40 years it played host to endless hot meals, laughter, companionship and even carpet bowls, until it became too expensive to run. When sold in 2004 the proceeds were invested via a trust that provided grants to local groups supporting older people in Brampton through The Laurel House Management Committee. As the committee members themselves were growing older the decision was made to transfer the trust to the Foundation this year to carry on Mrs Cartmell’s legacy. The Laurel House Brampton Fund has now been set up at the Foundation and continues to operate as Mrs Cartmell wished. Some former committee members remain involved and have been advising on grant applications to provide continuity. Ellen Clements, Senior Grants & Programmes Officer, said: All five applicants that we have so far supported have received previous funding from the Laurel House Management Committee. I have been working closely with the previous Trustees to ensure that the funding goes to the groups that are a priority for the fund and they are happy to support. Brampton Old Peoples Association is one of the groups that have been awarded funding by the new Laurel House Brampton Fund. The association was set up in 1953 and is a lifeline for many elderly people who otherwise wouldn’t get out and see other people. The members enjoy trips out, pie and pea suppers and even a Christmas dinner. Secretary of Brampton Old People’s Association Marian Campbell said: “We have been supported by Laurel House for many years and the fund this year kindly awarded us a grant of £2,000 for activities and outings. This has enabled us to give 150 older people a free day trip to Whitley Bay (where the sun shone for us) and two subsidised bus trips to Southport. We will also be having a Christmas dinner at The Auctioneer in January.” Tim Cartmell a member of our Main Grants Committee and Mary Cartmell’s son said My mother’s aim was to support the older generation in Brampton, and I think it’s fair to say she succeeded. It’s incredible that well over half a century later we are still supporting people that ironically would have been youngsters all those years ago. She would be delighted. How to give forever We can work with you or your Professional Adviser now to ensure your wishes for your legacy are met, so it can benefit many generations to come. For more information, contact caroline@cumbriafoundation.org We recommend that you seek professional advice from a solicitor before writing or amending your will. Growing Local Philanthropy 10 11

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