Sage to Launch New Foundation
Accountancy software company "Sage" will launch a new Foundation in October 2015.
The Foundations will be offering two free accountancy products to any charity, as well as grants worth around £5m a year, and five volunteering days from each of its 14,000 employees. It will operate on what it calls a "2+2+2" basis - donating 2 per cent of employee time, 2 per cent of free cash flow, and two "smart technology" products per charity or social enterprise. The company operates in 24 countries, so not all these resources will be distributed in the UK. The Sage Foundation will also give grants to create entrepreneurial opportunities for the young and disadvantaged within communities, as well as grants to match employee charitable donations and fundraising. The foundation will not itself be a charity, but will distribute money through a charity bank account - where money is donated into an account which attracts charitable tax relief, and then distributed at the donor's direction.