New Era of Fundraising at King’s

We are delighted to announce that The King’s School Canterbury has been awarded the Institute of Development Professionals in Education (IDPE) Ambition and Progress Award 2024, recognising the significant strides made in our long-term fundraising strategy.

King’s has a long and proud history of philanthropy, and in recent years, the Development team has worked diligently to secure vital gifts and legacies to transform young people’s futures. However, as the landscape of philanthropy has evolved, so too has the need for a more structured and sustainable approach. In 2023,  the Team embarked on an exciting new chapter, building on strong foundations to deliver a bold step-change in approach.

Strategic Ambitions and Measurable Progress

At the heart of this transformation was the ambition to align fundraising efforts directly with the School’s strategic aspirations and to deliver a sustainable, long-term strategy that would secure predictable outcomes and broaden engagement across our community.

Since 2023, the team has achieved significant milestones:

  • Focus on Bursaries: Establishing bursary fundraising as a cornerstone of the School’s strategy, ensuring that more students have access to the exceptional opportunities King’s offers.
  • New Regular Giving Initiatives: Launching the 1541 Regular Giving Club, to provide a dependable philanthropic income stream for the School.
  • Legacy Programme Relaunch: Revitalising The Robert Rose Society and developing a comprehensive legacy strategy.
  • Enhanced Donor Stewardship: Introducing a detailed stewardship programme to strengthen relationships with our valued supporters.
  • Community Engagement: Launching The King’s Association to bring together alumni, parents, and friends into a single, vibrant community.
  • Bursary Endowment Growth: Successfully increasing the bursary endowment by £1.24 million in 2023-2024.
  • First Social Impact Report: Publishing King’s first-ever report to highlight the impact of philanthropy and partnerships on our students and the wider community.

Looking ahead

Winning the IDPE Ambition and Progress Award 2024 is a testament not only to the work of the Development team, but also to the support of the broader King’s community: our collective efforts have driven a forward-thinking approach that ensures philanthropy is firmly embedded in King’s future.

Our heartfelt thanks go to the IDPE for this honour, and congratulations to all the other winners and nominees in this year’s awards. Together, we are shaping the future of philanthropy in education.

Discover more about our initiatives at Support Us • The King’s School, Canterbury and about The King’s Association at www.kings-association.co.uk.