sector has recovered strongly

If we look at different types of school, boys’ schools continue to raise a significant proportion of the philanthropic income generated across the sector as a whole – 7.5% of the respondents were boys’ schools, raising 25% of the total income generated. However, there is a direct correlation between schools which are raising the most money and the age of the development office. We see schools four to six years along on their development journey with an average return on investment of 3.6:1. This compares to schools with development offices which have been established for 16–20 years, where the average return on investment is almost double at 6.2:1. Many boys’ schools were amongst the first to set up development offices and have therefore been able to spend more time cultivating and strengthening those all-important relationships with their prospects. Reassuringly though, income generation across girls’ schools continues to grow by an average of 13% per annum, whilst co-ed schools continue to represent the greatest number of respondents and generate the greatest amount of philanthropic income.

Resource

Equally, the data from our benchmarking survey proves that fundraising success usually reflects the resources that are allocated to development. Again, if we compare across different types of school, 92% of boys’ schools have at least 3 full-time equivalent staff working in their development office, in comparison to 34% of co-ed and 12% of girls’ schools. The more staff your school has engaged in development, the greater the chances of fundraising success.

Expertise

The development offices that generate the most income are, in the main, led by experienced fundraising professionals. The data shows that senior development professionals who have been working in fundraising for at least seven years are most likely to deliver the best results. Their understanding of what motivates donors, their capacity to build meaningful relationships and their experience of the challenges of fundraising, all contribute to their ability to deliver results.

Bursaries matter

Most independent schools are now raising funds for bursaries. This has been a developing trend for some time.