Philanthropic giving across the Livery
Philanthropy has been a key aspect of Livery Companies across the centuries with the establishment of schools and craft apprenticeships, the building of almshouses for the aged poor and many other initiatives to support the disadvantaged.
The Pan-Livery Initiative
The Pan Livery Initiative was set up in 2017 with a view to developing a shared philanthropic endeavour, improving the culture of pan-livery engagement, and better understanding the nature and scale of this philanthropic effort in order to publicise it within the livery and beyond. Its activities were overseen by a Pan-Livery Steering Group chaired by Past Lord Mayor Alderman Sir Charles Bowman and comprising senior representatives of the livery. WCoMC Liveryman Bob Harris was invited to join the Steering Group and has since led three surveys of philanthropic giving.
The 2020 and 2021 Surveys of Philanthropic Giving
The first survey of all 110 Livery Companies was launched in October 2020. The headline finding was that the aggregate financial support by Livery Companies was £72m per annum. The second survey was launched in September 2021 - which covered a period heavily impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. The findings from the survey showed that aggregate financial support had increased to £75m. Donations by Company Members and the value of pro-bono support had also increased significantly. The 2021 survey findings were later incorporated in the Pan Livery Impact Report 2022 here.
The 2024 Survey and the Pan Livery Impact Report 2025
A further survey of Philanthropic Giving across all 113 Livery Companies was launched in March 2024. Key findings from the survey were that:
- Aggregate financial support to charities by the livery movement had increased by 10% over the 2021 total to £81m.
- Funds donated or raised by Liverymen and Freemen during the year had increased by 73% to £221 per member.
- General volunteering support provided to front-line charities increased by 18%.
- Pro-bono support increased by 24% to 32,000 hours – valued at over £4.5m.
These findings were incorporated in The Livery Impact Report 2025 which can be seen by clicking on the report image below. It also includes details of several Livery-wide philanthropic initiatives and case studies on trade-related education. The Lord Mayor and the Chair of the Livery Committee provided a foreword to the report - which was distributed widely across the livery and to key external stakeholders.
Pan-Livery Pro Bono Interest Group
As a result of the significant and increasing level of pro-bono support provided to charities by a growing number of Livery Companies, a Pan-Livery Interest Group was established in early 2022. The Group held quarterly in-person meetings up until spring 2025, with attendees from over 50 Livery Companies. As a result of this activity a body of shared knowledge and good practice has been developed which now resides on the Livery Committee website and is available for members of all Livery Companies to access.
The focus of the PLPB team now is twofold:
- To build on and strengthen collaborative working between four of the modern professional services Livery Companies: the HR Professionals, Information Technologists, Management Consultants and Marketors (the HIMM group).
- To encourage those (older/wealthier) Livery Companies - who provide financial support to a large number of beneficiary charities - to identify charities who could benefit from pro-bono support to refer them to the relevant HIMM contact.
A small team from those four companies including Steve Cant, Patrick Chapman and Bob Harris are working to progress these initiatives.