City event announced to fund charities affected by Presidents Club dinner scandal
Howard Lake | 26 January 2018 | News
Dame Helena Morrissey CBE has announced that she is working with City of London colleagues to put on a fundraising event to help those charities affected by the scandal of last week’s Presidents Club fundraising dinner.
Dame Helena is the head of personal investing at Legal & General Investment Management. Her event will also take the form of a fundraising dinner but, in marked contrast to the men-only guest approach of the Presidents Club event, it will feature a 50-50 gender split in guests.
Dame Helena Morrissey CBE
After 15 years as CEO of investment management firm Newton, Morrissey is now Chair of the Investment Association, the UK’s industry trade body whose members manage more than £5 trillion.
In 2010 she set up The 30% Club. A group of Chairs and CEOs committed to better gender balance through voluntary action, it is now a global initiative. She is also author of A good time to be a girl, published next month.
Rewarding charities for doing the right thing?
Second children's hospital Evelina London to return #PresidentsClub donations amid sexual harassment allegations https://t.co/nRGbhEovn5 pic.twitter.com/hRG8JyKCge
— HuffPost UK (@HuffPostUK) January 24, 2018
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She told The Daily Telegraph: “We’re looking to raise money for those charities who felt compelled to hand back proceeds from that dinner,” she said. “We want to make sure they don’t lose out.”
Writing in the newspaper she added: “It would be a real shame, and risk perpetuating the ‘old’ system, if people were put off entering the City because the Presidents Club is what they think business will be like.”
No date for the event has yet been confirmed, but it will be hosted by the Lord Mayor at Mansion House. Nor has it been confirmed whether it will be an annual fundraising event.
Given the opprobrium heaped on the behaviour towards women hostesses at the Presidents Club’s dinner, and the efforts of many at the event to distance themselves from association with it, it is not surprising that many companies and individuals have voiced support for this event. M&G, Aviva, Schroders and PwC have already announced their support.
Asset managers first to sign up to Dame Helena Morrissey event to raise cash for charities https://t.co/juOEjO78LG via @investmentweek
— Cathy Brennan (@cathygb75) January 26, 2018
*hero alert*
Take a bow Dame Helena Morrissey 👊👊👊https://t.co/wYdq0QfaRi— Joel Voysey (@joelvoysey) January 25, 2018
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.