Fundraising
Manchester Camerata can only deliver the impact that it achieves through philanthropic contributions. Our fundraising work ensures we have the financial stability to deliver impact in all areas of activity.
In 2023-24, we began to see positive results from our work in previous years to develop and implement a new strategy for our fundraising. Our ambition remains undimmed, with the Board agreeing an aspirational plan to build a £10 million Future Fund to provide a financially stable future for the organisation.
We were delighted that the Grindrod family along with Penny & John Early renewed their gift to support Caroline Pether’s Leader chair. On top of this we had fantastic new and ongoing support for other musicians’ chairs, including Kathy Arundale (Anthony Banks & Daniel Storer), John Caine (Janet Fulton), Ron and Jill Robinson (Hannah Roberts), and Gill Williamson (Sophie McQueen).
A huge thank you to The Utley Foundation for providing further support over the next 3 years to support our core costs. That helps to provide the organisational stability that underpins our operations in both concerts and community.
The Utley Foundation is also one of a group of supporters who are contributing to the establishment of the new National Centre of Excellence for Music and Dementia, in which Manchester Camerata is the lead partner. The Foundation has been a longstanding supporter of our work in music and dementia, and this ongoing support will enable us to expand our activities and make an even greater impact.
This year also witnessed the early impact of the first cohort of Camerata 360° Ruth Sutton Fellows, early career musicians who are benefiting from holistic support to develop their craft. These fellows are already bringing enormous benefits to the organisation, audiences and communities. That impact has been made possible only due to the generosity of the Ruth Sutton Trust for Music which provided the first six figure gift to Camerata, representing a step change in the level of philanthropic support we are able to secure.
Alongside these high-profile successes, in 2023-24 we have also invested in building our organisational capacity to create the team and the mechanisms essential to succeed in an increasingly specialised fundraising environment.
This year, we made significant strides by implementing a new Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system, Beacon, thanks to a generous legacy donation and a digital box office, thanks to a grant from The Clothworkers’ Foundation. These tools have enhanced our fundraising capabilities, allowing us better stewardship, data analysis, and the ability to attract new gifts.
We also launched the Director’s Circle, a group of strategic philanthropists supporting Gabor’s artistic vision and projects like Mozart, Made in Manchester, which has already garnered support from donors including: John and Penny Early, Michael & Kathryn Reeves, Ron and Jill Robinson, Geoffrey and Gay Shindler, Dr David Shreeve and anonymous donors. Furthermore, we introduced Camerata50, a direct debit/regular giving scheme for unrestricted support with great success.
Looking Forward
In 2023-24 we started to feel the benefits of our shift to a new structure and approach to fundraising. As we move into next year, we will maintain this trajectory, leveraging real world examples from our Fellowships to show how philanthropic giving supports impact. This will enable us to continue to seek and secure further high-value philanthropic donations in line with the Board’s agreed Endowment Strategy.
We also plan to extend Beacon’s functionality to include audience data management and support our own box office operations.