The Sackler Trust, a British charitable trust funded by the family behind OxyContin, has kept two charities receiving over £1.1m anonymous in its latest accounts to protect their reputations from 'serious prejudice'. The trust gave £3.8m to arts, education and science bodies in 2024, according to filings on New Year's Eve.
Named recipients of £250,000 each include Veterans Aid, which tackles homelessness among ex-service personnel, and the Belvoir Cricket and Countryside Trust. However, two grants totalling £1,150,000 were exempted from disclosure. The accounts state that naming them would expose recipients to serious prejudice and impair their charitable activities.
The trust has been shunned by leading arts institutions like the National Gallery and Tate due to the Sackler family's links to the US opioid crisis. It paused donations in 2019 but quietly resumed in 2020. Other named recipients of £60,000 or more include Happy Day Ministries, Peterborough Asylum and Refugee Community Association, and Waterlife Recovery Trust.
The trust, chaired by Dame Theresa Sackler, committed £7.4m in grants by end of 2024. A US judge recently approved a deal requiring Sackler family members to contribute up to $7bn to settle opioid lawsuits. Critics accuse the family of using philanthropy for 'reputation laundering'.
