An ethical endowment for the long-term financial security of the women's sector

The UK Government has just relaunched its women’s health strategy with a pretty striking admission: the system has failed women. From delayed diagnoses to inadequate pain relief, there’s now open acknowledgement of what many have been saying for years. Namely, that there  is  such a thing as 'medical misogyny', and it has real consequences: a systemic pattern of underinvestment, dismissal and neglect. One of the more interesting shifts in the new strategy is the suggestion t

Over £1bn in forgotten money has been unlocked for social causes. But how are decisions made about who gets it? And why aren’t women and girls one of the priorities? Over £1 billion of forgotten money has already been released for social causes in the UK through the Dormant Assets Scheme. But who gets to decide where it goes? “Dormant assets” sounds technical, but the idea is actually pretty simple. It’s money sitting in bank accounts, investments, pensions or insurance polic

Let’s start with the basics. An endowment is a pot of money that’s invested to generate income over the long term. Instead of spending the whole fund at once, the money is carefully invested so it can keep producing funding year after year. Think of it like planting a tree rather than buying fruit. You don’t just get one harvest — you get many. Most endowments are invested in financial markets. This usually includes a mix of: Shares in companies (the stock market) Government