Giving Bizz

ABC GoodStart

It’s a compelling, David and Goliath-style tale.

T he GoodStart syndicate, made up of two Christian an d two secular welfare agencies, last year outbid private equity company Archer Capital to win control of 678 ABC Learning C entres .

When the cheques were handed over last month, GoodStart officially became Austral ia's largest childcare provider, dedicated to providing thousands of Australian children with affordable, quality childcare .

Foresight, passion, audacity and goodwill have been credited with the success of this incredible chapter in Australia’s corporate history.

The demise of the ABC Learning Centres created an opportunity that visionaries, dedicated to the not-for-profit sector, could not ignore. With the help of a committed group of bankers, lawyers, accountants, tax experts and business identities, many working free of charge or for very reduced success fees, a consortium was formed between Mission Australia, the Benevolent Society, the Brotherhood of St Laurence, and a small group called Social Ventures Australia .

A new investment model was developed that allowed donors to invest $1 million or more in unsecured eight-year notes for a return of 12% a year. It’s an inferior return to a profit-driven venture but investors also get the benefit of knowing that they are supporting a business dedicated to social good.

CALL TO ACTION FROM THE MYER FOUNDATION

In a bid to dispel the myth that “Australian’s are generous” and to grow the phil anthropic sector, Peter Winneke , of the Myer Foundation, is writing to prominent members of the Australian philanthropic community to enlist their support.

His letter includes some damning statistics from the Australian Tax Office. In 2007/08 , he says :

•  Australians gave only 0.4% of their income to charities ; and

•  More than 8 million people (nearly two-thirds of taxpayers) did not claim a deduction for a charitable gift.

The letter also quotes research that indicates that high net worth individuals in Australia are giving significantly less than their contemporaries in other OECD countries.

In order to change the culture of giving in this country, Peter writes, “We need a family to step up and establish the first $1 billion dollar foundation in Australia (to get philanthropy on the front page of every newspaper in the country) and we need many champions at the more modest level to step up and encourage others to do so.”

The letter outlines the many benefits that flow from the creation of Private Ancillary Fund s (“PAF s ”) and their significant imp act on the philanthropic sector . But, Peter points out, t here are thousands of families in Australia who could create a PAF, but haven’t . He claims that t here should not be 800 PAFs in this country; there should be 8000.

He appeals to philanthropists to sp read the word about PAF s and the experiences and rewards that they have received from family involvement . He also asks recipients to consider forwarding his letter to friends or colleagues who would be in a position to establish a family foundation, to encourage them to act.