Our history
Founded in 1979 by King Charles III and inspired by His Majesty’s values of harmony and sustainability, we are committed to helping people and communities to change the world around them, creating lasting improvements to people’s lives and a sustainable future for all.
For over 40 years, the Fund has supported His Majesty’s charitable work. The Fund is on a mission to transform lives and build sustainable communities through grantmaking, social investment and incubation of initiatives and projects.
The Fund has invested more than £100 million in charitable causes in the UK and overseas. We award grants to a wide range of good causes across our funding themes: Environment, Countryside, Social Inclusion, Health and Wellbeing, Heritage and Conservation and Education.
Throughout all our work we endeavour to maximise charitable impact, drawing on our funding and convening power to leverage further support from others. And to deliver this well, we ensure our governance and management are fit for purpose and in line with best practice.
You can learn more about the history of the Fund, from 1979 to the present day, below.
1979
- The Fund was established to support the Prince of Wales Committee and environmental projects in Wales.
1980s
- 1980: First donation of £10,000 awarded to The Welsh Environment Foundation to conserve and improve the environment.
- 1981: Further funding was provided to support the Welsh Environment Foundation until the charity delivered its mission and closed in 1986.
- 1988: The Fund set up AG Carrick Limited.
1990s
- 1990: Duchy Originals Limited was set up to sell organic food and donate its profits to the Fund.
- 1992: Duchy Originals manufactures and sells its first product – oaten biscuits.
- 1993: Grant awarded to The Prison Phoenix Trust to support health and wellbeing of prisoners through yoga and meditation.
2000s
- 2004: The Accounting for Sustainability project was set up to to inspire action by finance leaders to drive a fundamental shift towards resilient business models and a sustainable economy.
- 2007: The Prince’s Rainforests Project was set up to undertake a multi-stakeholder approach to find solutions to the complex challenges of tropical rainforest clearance.
- 2008: Fund registered as charity and company in England and Wales.
- 2009: Duchy Originals becomes an exclusive Waitrose brand.
2010 - 2015
- 2010: The Prince’s Rainforests Project was embedded in a wider initiative called The International Sustainability Unit which focused on fishing and plastics, and worked to raise awareness on the wider economic importance of the ocean and Blue Economy Development Frameworks.
- 2012: First grant of £300,000 awarded to the Soil Association Innovative Farmers programme, which the Fund continues to support.
- 2013: The Fund supported His Majesty’s vision by incubating Step up to Serve, a cross-sector UK-wide campaign to increase the number of young people taking part in social action.
- 2013: The Fund becomes one of the first investors in the first Social Impact Bond.
2015 - 2019
- 2017: The Prince’s Countryside Fund is brought into the Group to support its development.
- 2018: Ahead of our Founder’s 70th birthday, the Fund facilitated an independent review to improve operational efficiency and long-term sustainability of The King’s Charities.
- 2019: 40th anniversary and over £70 million awarded in grants.
2020-2022
- 2021: COVID Recovery Fund launched to alleviate the impact of the pandemic.
- 2021: AG Carrick Limited transferred to the Prince’s Foundation as a social investment to support the community.
- 2022: 10th anniversary celebration of Innovative Farmers programme at Trefranck Farm, Cornwall.
- 2022: Our Founder becomes HM King Charles III.
- 2022: New strategic partnership programme launched with a commitment of £1.95m to 7 charities to deliver environment and social inclusion projects.
2023-2024
- 2023: Summer celebratory event at Clarence House, with 150 guests including His Majesty.
- 2023: The Prince’s Countryside Fund is renamed as The Royal Countryside Fund and separates out of the Group.
- 2023: With the gracious consent of our Founder, we are renamed King Charles III Charitable Fund.
- 2023: Launch of the Coronation Food Project.
- 2024: Four new strategic partners announced to support regenerative land and seascapes.
Our projects
We focus on key issues and provide funding to numerous organisations each year to deliver projects within the funding themes.