About The Flat Iron Fund
In 2014, Sophie (the wife of Flat Iron Founder Charlie Carroll) decided to set up charitable giving at Flat Iron. The core principle was that guests could make a very small optional donation for each steak they enjoyed, when they got their bill at the end of the meal. Each guest donation would then be matched by a donation from Flat Iron.
In 2018, after raising £1m for Macmillan Cancer Support, we officially set up the Flat Iron Fund as an independent registered charity. Since then, the Fund has extended its support to many more charities.
Every year, the Flat Iron Fund’s trustees select a small number of registered charities as beneficiaries.
The motivation behind the Flat Iron Fund is very simple: we want to realise the vision that incredible things can be achieved without any adverse effects to anyone.
Small change can make a huge difference.
It’s a model for charitable giving we’re really proud of.
Simplicity
Our aim has been to set up the Flat Iron Fund so that it has no downside, only a very real upside. The idea is that each (deliberately small) donation that’s made by guests, matched by an equivalent donation from Flat Iron, adds up over time to raise a significant amount of money for charities. The donation amount of 10 pence was chosen very specifically - we wanted it to be small as to be barely noticeable to our guests. Most importantly, it has always been signposted as being completely voluntary, and very easy to remove if the guest would prefer to do so.
Charlie and Sophie continue to cover any costs generated by the Flat Iron Fund personally, which means that every single penny donated to the Flat Iron Fund goes to its chosen charities.
The Flat Iron Fund’s model is a very simple machine that, once set up, can very effortlessly tick along, with very positive effects.
Discretion
The Flat Iron Fund has always sought to be discreet. It was created in order to do something positive because doing good is, quite simply, a great thing to do. It has been a very deliberate decision not to publicise its work widely, with PR pieces or glossy photography, because that isn’t what it’s about.
There are no business or financial incentives to the Flat Iron Fund. It was set up to make great things happen, perhaps with the added bonus of making it more appealing to work at, or dine at, Flat Iron. Flat Iron has always hoped to be as much about making people feel good as it is about serving great food, and we feel the Flat Iron Fund brings these two things together.
Curation
As the Flat Iron Fund donates partly on behalf of Flat Iron guests, the trustees have always been careful to select charities that it hopes everyone will be excited to support.
The main area of focus is health related charities that complement and support the vital work of the NHS. Flat Iron has always been about people and the fund seeks to reflect this. At Flat Iron’s request, the fund has also agreed to donate 25% of our yearly donations to environmental causes to help protect the world we live in.
Additionally, the Flat Iron Fund donates to urgent appeals as they arise - for example, in 2022, we donated to the Ukraine DEC appeal at the outbreak of the war.
We do our best to make sure not a penny goes to waste. The fund only donates to registered charities, and Sophie takes time to meet and liaise with the beneficiaries to ensure they are getting the best support.