Nik Kotecha: Why supporting grassroots charities can transform communities

IF 2026 has taught us anything so far, it is that resilience in the third sector is no longer optional.

Charities are navigating one of the most demanding landscapes we have seen in years. Global needs are growing and we are feeling increasing pressure on our limited resources.

In times like these, hope becomes more than an idea – it becomes a driving force. A reason to keep building, supporting and showing up, even when the path ahead feels uncertain.

Dr Nik Kotecha OBE DL speaks about his charitable foundation’s focus on Leicester and Leicestershire, supporting organisations that truly inspire and bring hope through their work, significantly improving and saving lives.

Dr Kotecha and his wife Moni set up their foundation in 2017. In this interview, he explains the impact of the foundation’s efforts in Leicestershire and beyond.

The Randal Foundation was set up in 2017. What drove the ambitious focus on Leicestershire?

Dr Kotecha: Leicestershire is home for my family and me, so it was natural that it became a real focus for our foundation. The people and communities of the county helped us in so many ways when we arrived as refugees from Uganda in 1972, and I’ve seen first-hand how organisations at the heart of the community step in and step up when people are in need.

Fast forward more than 50 years and, having built my global pharmaceuticals business, Morningside Pharmaceuticals (MPL), here in Loughborough, I’ve built relationships with a host of third-sector organisations, recognising the central role they play in our communities. Having supported many as partners alongside MPL, when we created our foundation the local priorities were in sharp focus for me. Some of the earliest grants we made were to local charities.

You have a strategy for all your giving and you’ve always considered grants within themed areas. How has that played out in Leicestershire?

Between 2019 and 2025, our Randal Foundation supported a total of 36 organisations across the full range of our focus areas. These include 11 charities tackling mental ill-health, an area which has been a priority from the outset and remains so today.

Our ongoing partnership with the Curve Theatre on its Shine programme is a great example, supporting young people from five Leicester schools to access a programme centred on building life skills, restoring confidence and growing resilience.

Another key area has been supporting charities helping those from the most disadvantaged backgrounds who face barriers in education. We’ve aided eight organisations with projects to tackle this. Our flagship here in Leicester is our significant investment in the IntoUniversity centre at Beaumont Leys, helping young people aspire to higher and further education, opening doors for the future and raising achievement levels.

There has also been a great need over time to provide healthcare for vulnerable people, including the elderly and terminally ill. I’m proud of the work we’ve done supporting nine local charities that play these crucial roles in our communities, making a difference and alleviating suffering every day.

That has included supporting Age UK in Leicester and grant-aiding related projects during the pandemic, including providing thousands of meals for NHS workers. Thank goodness those days are behind us, but I’m proud to have been able to support our fantastic Leicestershire NHS at a time of great need.

Nik KotechaRandal Foundation

Finally, tackling poverty and extreme hardship, helping to rehabilitate prisoners, including female offenders, and supporting organisations that step in to help women and children at risk of violence have been the focus of another seven grants we’ve made in the past few years.

We’ve supported the Shama Women’s Centre, whose incredible work, I believe, saves lives, and we’ve also given grants to Loughborough College to help students overcome financial hardship.

This is an exceptionally wide range of organisations to have supported, but are there any in particular that stand out for you over time?

I can honestly say that each one has been memorable in terms of impact and the tangible difference made. What really stands out for me is that there are so many passionate people determined to make a difference in our county, very often unsung heroes getting on with the business of making lives better, making lives bearable and helping others on the path to better lives.

It’s clear to me how much it means to those leading, guiding and working with in community-led organisations, and how deeply passionate they are about their causes.

And, of course, it means a great deal to those who need help, whether that’s providing a listening ear to those with worries or a food bank to help feed a family. It might be a youth group helping to steer young lives or a befriending service combating loneliness and isolation.

That combined effort, that shared and immense investment in our communities, means so much for our society too. Leicester and Leicestershire’s communities are stronger, safer, cleaner, healthier and better cared for because of so many people doing, frankly, incredible things. It’s been my privilege to get to know and support these charities.

You’ve highlighted the areas of work that you’ve supported. What about the scale of organisations you partner with?

That’s a great question and, to coin a phrase, not all charities are created equal. It’s a well-known fact that a handful, the top one per cent of about 170,000 registered charities in England and Wales, receive almost 70 per cent of all the charitable donations people make.

Big charities with big marketing budgets can deliver memorable campaigns that draw in funds. Meanwhile, closer to home, there are thousands of organisations delivering right at the heart of our communities, often relying on tiny incomes and volunteers’ time, but achieving so very much. So, while we’ve supported some large charities, we’ve chosen to support grassroots organisations too. In fact, in 2025, we started working with a large number of community foundations as partners, including Leicestershire and Rutland Community Foundation, with which we’ve supported 10 small charities delivering extraordinary work right here in our county.

In 2025, we supported more than 65 frontline, grassroots charities throughout the Midlands and, in 2026, we’ve increased that number again by working nationally, doubling the number of small charities we work with to more than 130.

Kotecha's partnership with the Curve Theatre on its Shine programme supports young people from five Leicester schools to access a programme centred on building life skills, restoring confidence and growing resilienceRandal Foundation

So, having had a sustained focus on supporting some incredible causes in Leicester, what’s been achieved?

Having started out in my career as a scientist, evidence, impact and outcomes are key for me.

We’ve always asked all the organisations we give to to help us understand the difference our grants make. Since starting our grant-giving in 2019, I’m proud to say we’ve touched the lives of more than 70,091 people in Leicestershire, sometimes improving lives significantly through our work with Rainbows Hospice and, at other times, supporting charities such as Leicester Blood Bikes, which are directly saving lives.

We’ve also seen potential in causes that change a person’s “life course”, and by that I mean opening doors that might have seemed closed, allowing new directions to be considered. Great examples of these indirect but potentially life-transforming projects include support for Warning Zone, equipping children with knowledge and skills that keep them safe in our city, and support for the National Space Centre in its fantastic STEM engagement work with young people.

Our policy-changing work is key here too. In getting government attention and focus on matters as wide-ranging as tackling addiction, reversing economic inactivity and spotlighting the plight of those facing loneliness and isolation, we’ve been the catalyst for national policy shifts, and we’re working on more.

We’re working now, for instance, to raise the profile of the need for action on suicide among men and boys. These are national programmes for policy change, but they’ll benefit Leicestershire too.

Finally, what would you say to businesses considering their own charitable giving or CSR?

I’d simply say look close to home, or close to your heart. Making a difference in your own community or in the areas that mean the most to you means you connect closely with your charity partners. And I’d suggest perhaps forging longer-lasting relationships, which can have a greater impact on what matters to you most.