Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s passing has been mourned by people from all backgrounds around the world. But, outside her family, it may be the UK charity sector that feels her loss most keenly.
The Queen was a dedicated and active patron of good causes in the UK and globally, working with around 600 different non-profit organisations during her 70 year reign. Research by the Charities Aid Foundation in 2012 found that she had raised over £1.4 billion for charity.
Perhaps Queen Elizabeth’s longest charitable relationship was with the Red Cross, of which she became a patron in 1949, several years before her coronation. Some of her other long-standing patronages include the RSPCA, Cancer Research UK and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.
The heads of many of the charities Her Majesty supported have paid tribute to her over the last week, expressing their deep gratitude for her lifetime of public service.
We also salute the Queen for everything she did for so many incredible charities – and hope that we can all follow her example by giving back to the causes we care about.
