British Liver Trust and Children’s Liver Disease Foundation merger: FAQs

The British Liver Trust and Children's Liver Disease Foundation merged in April 2024.

By bringing together our combined passion, resources, and expertise, we aim to reach more people in need and become a more powerful voice to improve the quality of care for children and adults with a liver condition.

As a larger charity, there will be more opportunity to drive up standards of care, encourage research and provide information and support to everyone affected by liver disease and liver cancer.

For more detailed information, read our FAQs below. You can also register your interest for our webinar where we will explain the next steps. Register your interest in attending here.

FAQs

Why have the two charities merged?

The British Liver Trust and Children’s Liver Disease Foundation have merged for the benefit of patients now and in the future. By pooling our resources and expertise, we will increase our impact and reach, enabling us to support more children, adults and families affected by liver disease and liver cancer.

It will also remove the duplication of effort, for example with representation on government boards and committees, and with administrative, compliance and regulatory responsibilities.

What is the benefit of the merger to people affected by liver disease?

As one distinct organisation it will be easier for all patients, family members, and carers to find and access services and support.

We will also be able to create a stronger single patient voice giving our campaigns more weight, enabling us to better advocate for policy change on behalf of everyone with liver disease. Improved joined up working including, for example, a combined effort and collaboration on research opportunities and seamless care throughout the transition from paediatric to adult care, could improve the quality of care and save lives.

How will the merger affect the services that both charities currently provide?

All the services and activities provided by both charities will continue. The merger will bring together the best practices and resources of both charities to create a more efficient organisation, which should lead to improved services and activities for our beneficiaries.

What is the benefit of the merger to donors and supporters?

Joining together will provide economies of scale and reduce costs, for example by combining back-office functions, and enable us to become more sustainable, efficient, and effective in the use of charitable funds for the benefit of all beneficiaries.

Donors and supporters play a crucial role in our mission and without them we would not be able to carry out our vital work. This is why we will maintain open communication and transparency throughout the merger process.

What will happen if supporters want to fundraise specifically for children?

Our aim is to use our resources to benefit the entire liver disease community. If supporters wish to fundraise specifically for children’s and young people’s services, their donations will only be used for that purpose.

Will the new larger charity have a new name?

In the short term, both organisations will retain their own branding and continue to deliver all the services that they currently provide. Over time the newly merged senior management, trustee and staff team will work together to develop what the fully integrated charity will look like. We will engage with our supporters and stakeholders during this process.

Now that the two charities have merged, what will happen to my data?

The British Liver Trust and Children’s Liver Disease Foundation believe it’s important to be upfront about what we do with your data, and we are committed to treating it with respect and keeping it safe.

Following the merger, the British Liver Trust will become the ‘Data Controller’ of all personal data processed by the merged charity.

If you provided your information to the Children’s Liver Disease Foundation, this may mean some of the methods we use to collect and look after your personal data will change. Please be reassured that we will continue to keep your personal data safe and we will only process it for the purposes you gave it to us.

We will keep you updated on the data migration process and provide you with a Notice of Data Transfer with clear details about the transfer of data to the British Liver Trust.

If you have any questions, please contact:

British Liver Trust on info@britishlivertrust.org.uk

Children’s Liver Disease Foundation on info@childliverdisease.org

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