Helping Comic Relief define its impact in a changing world.
Comic Relief is one of the UK’s most distinctive charities: a fundraiser, grantmaker, storyteller and national cultural institution. For 40 years, it has used entertainment, public generosity and powerful storytelling to support work towards a just world, free from poverty.
As Comic Relief approached its 40th anniversary, it wanted to clarify the impact it could have in a changed world. The environment around the charity had become more complex: fundraising was harder, media consumption was fragmenting, younger audiences are engaging in new ways, and the causes Comic Relief supports face growing challenges.
Firetail supported Comic Relief to develop an Impact Strategy that brought together its funding, fundraising, public engagement, partnerships, storytelling and strategic communications into a coherent view of its contribution.
We developed a strategic framework to help Comic Relief identify where it could have the greatest impact over a three-to-five-year horizon. The framework considered three core questions:
Landscape: what trends, pressures and opportunities are shaping Comic Relief’s work?
Assets: what unique resources, relationships and capabilities does Comic Relief bring?
Opportunities: where can Comic Relief lead, convene, inspire generosity and support lasting change?
The analysis drew on desk research, staff engagement, an all-staff survey, workshops, and interviews with peer funders, media organisations, sector experts and international partners. Throughout the process, we worked closely with the Chief Executive, senior leadership team and Trustees to test hypotheses, refine strategic options and validate emerging insights.
The work recognised Comic Relief’s distinctive role as a trusted entertainer and storyteller that can inspire generosity, build emotional connection, and support long-term action on poverty, inequality and injustice.
It positioned Comic Relief’s role as connecting audience engagement with mission impact: championing partners and causes to the public, while also championing the audience in how complex issues are communicated.
Mihir Warty, Chief Strategy and Impact Officer at Comic Relief, said:
“Firetail’s work on our impact framework has given Comic Relief a solid foundation for our future direction. It crystallised important conversations and gave us real clarity about the change we make in the world. Our new strategy really builds on those foundations.”