About us

Meet our team

Philippa Wilkinson (she/her)

Philippa.png
Learning Officer

Philippa Wilkinson (she/her)

Philippa works to drive forward the Foundation’s approach to impact and learning, and promote shared learning and collaboration between funders, and with the organisations that we fund.

Before joining the Foundation in September 2022, Philippa worked at Arts Council England, and she has previously held a range of roles within the public and cultural sectors.


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    Pre-application Q&A Creative, Confident Communities: 14 November 2024

    Watch our pre-application Q&A webinar for organisations interested in our support for Creative, Confident Communities, and hear the team talk through our updated guidance.

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    Creative, Confident Communities: Update to our grant funding guidance

    We have updated our grant funding guidance for support towards our funding priorities in Creative, Confident Communities.

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    New Connections: 20 organisations awarded a total of £1.4m

    At the end of last year, we announced New Connections, a new ringfenced fund for finding and supporting organisations who could not, or would not, usually apply to Esmée. We’re pleased now to share more about the organisations who have been awarded funding.

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  • Youth-led creativity (21)

    Invitation to Tender: Learning Partner for Youth-Led Creativity programme

    Esmée Fairbairn Foundation is looking to appoint a Learning Partner to co-design a Learning Programme for our Youth-Led Creativity programme.

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  • ACTA-DreamArts-4 (1)

    Youth-Led Creativity: 10 organisations awarded funding

    We're excited to announce the 10 organisations awarded Youth-Led Creativity funding, totalling £1.1m. Organisations will also be supported through a Learning Programme, which will run alongside the funding, and will be co-designed with them and Esmée's Involving Young People Collective.

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  • Feedback Global-A big group of people stand by a pile of trays full of fruit gathered (1)

    Pre-application Q&A webinar: 23 September 2024

    Watch a pre-application Q&A webinar we held on 23 September 2024 for organisations interested in applying to Esmée for support who have questions about our application process or guidance.

    Read more
  • Two people sitting at a table doing research. One is on a laptop and the other has a notebook.

    Invitation to Tender: Review of diversity, equity and inclusion support received through Funding Plus

    We are looking for a researcher to review the diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) support received through Funding Plus.

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  • Friends and Neighbourhood CIC

    Place Matters to research Esmée's place-led funding

    Esmée Fairbairn Foundation has commissioned Place Matters to research the impact of our place-led funding pilots: Every One, Every Day in Barking and Dagenham (Participatory City Foundation), Plymouth Octopus Project in Plymouth, and Sandwell Council of Voluntary Organisations in Sandwell.

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  • Cwm-Arian-Evenlode

    Blue Spaces programme: highlights and learning so far

    Esmée’s Freshwater Partnerships Development Manager, Jenny Wheeldon, shares an update on our Blue Spaces programme. Launched in early 2023, learn more about the brilliant organisations and activities being supported through the programme, along with highlights from what we have learnt so far.

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  • Stock photo-Black woman with long braids walking in the woods-Photo credit-Children in Nature Network

    Designing a Senior Leadership Development programme for People of Colour in the Environment sector

    Invitation to Tender: We're looking to work with a consultant to support the co-design of a senior leadership programme for people of colour in the environment sector.

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  • Sunset on a reservoir as viewed through reeds.

    Our support and solidarity

    To all the organisations and people we fund, we want to offer further support, encouragement, and flexibility at this time of racist violence and threat from the far right.

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  • Youth-Led Creativity illustration

    Youth-Led Creativity funding: update

    An update on our Youth-Led Creativity funding, which launched earlier this year. In it, we share more about the design of the fund, our approach to assessing applications and what’s next.

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  • Rainbow Migration-Rainbow Migration service users at Pride in London 2023-4

    Working towards A Fairer Future: reflections so far

    Catherine Hillis, Director of A Fairer Future at Esmée, shares her reflections on her first year leading the team to deliver the first full year of our new A Fairer Future strategy and how the wider context is shaping our work.

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  • EFF-Annual Report 2023-front cover

    Annual Report and Accounts 2023

    Our 2023 Annual Report and Accounts gives an overview of our funding, investments and operations during the year.

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    Research to analyse DEI Data Standard's impact on UK funding

    We are pleased to announce that the National Voluntary Community and Social Enterprise Data and Insights Observatory, in partnership with The Social Investment Consultancy, has been commissioned to analyse the impact of the DEI Data Standard on the UK funding landscape.

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  • LocalMotion-Community members meet in Carmarthen, Wales, for a Learning Summit2

    LocalMotion secures £18m funding until 2031

    LocalMotion's original funders, including Esmée, are continuing their involvement in the social justice network, ensuring six places in England and Wales can realise their long-term plans for change.

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  • Northern Roots-Group of young people all pulling on a rope together in game

    Making partnerships work

    Read our new Insights report, which shares learning and advice from organisations we fund on what makes good partnerships, and how to make them work.

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    What do people think about Esmée Fairbairn Foundation 2024

    Read the findings of a 2024 survey of successful and unsuccessful applicants about their experience of Esmée. Gina Crane, Esmée's Director of Communications and Learning shares her reflections on the findings.

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  • Corston Independent Funders' Coalition

    Corston Independent Funders’ Coalition shares new objectives

    The Corston Independent Funders’ Coalition (CIFC) is a group of independent funders working together to enable women’s access to justice by supporting women-centred, holistic and trauma-responsive approaches.

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  • Think for the Future.png

    Using social investment to secure a fairer future

    Tom Colborne, Esmée’s Social Investment Portfolio Manager, writes about our social investment plans to support in a fairer future. This is part of a series of blogs on how our social investment strategy will contribute to Esmée’s mission.

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  • Involving Young People Collective at Esmee

    Esmée and the Involving Young People Collective, Year 3

    To help us reflect on how Esmée and the Involving Young People Collective are working together, staff and young consultants complete an annual satisfaction survey, based on the 10 values for co-production with young people.

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    Pre-application Q&A webinar: 13 May 2024

    Watch a pre-application Q&A webinar we held on 13 May for organisations interested in applying to Esmée for support who have questions about our application process and guidance.

    Read more
  • Sunset on a reservoir as viewed through reeds.

    Increasing Funding Plus support for wellbeing

    We are committed to targeting more Funding Plus support towards preventing burnout and improving wellbeing for the people we fund.

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    Esmée’s allocation to social investment increased to £60m

    We are delighted to announce that Esmée Fairbairn Foundation is increasing our allocation to social investment to £60m.

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  • Rainbow Migration-Rainbow Migration service users at Pride in London 2023-2

    Diversity, equity and inclusion: progress in 2023

    A summary of key actions we have taken during 2023 to make progress on our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion.

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  • LocalMotion-Community members meet in Carmarthen, Wales, for a Learning Summit

    Who our funding is reaching 2023

    To help us understand who our funding is reaching, we ask all applicants and organisations we fund to complete a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) monitoring form. See a report analysing the data we collected for grants awarded and applications decided in 2023.

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  • TakeNote

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    Watch a webinar we hosted with Take Note exploring a series of practical tools and approaches they've developed to support more equitable and impactful partnership work.

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  • Header image (2)

    Proposed changes to the Sentencing Council's guidelines

    See the joint response of the Corston Independent Funders' Coalition to the Sentencing Council's consultation on the Imposition of community and custodial sentences guideline.

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  • Black2Nature-children on a trip wildlife spotting.jpg

    Supporting a more diverse, equitable and inclusive environment sector

    A new report by Hybrid Consulting and sam-culture reviews activity to address the lack of diversity in the environment sector. Commissioned by Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, Simon Wightman, Esmée's Funding Manager Lead for Our Natural World shares his reflections on the findings and Esmée's role.

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