Epworth Investment Management Limited (Epworth), the UK investment manager dedicated to serving the needs of charities, has announced the launch of the Epworth Climate Stewardship Fund. It invests in a way that will help UK charities both save the planet and target above market returns over the long term.

Created in response to the climate emergency, the fund has been developed in partnership with UK charities.

Climate change has been at the core of Epworth’s investment approach for over 10 years. We engage with companies in all sectors to push for better action on reducing carbon emissions and we avoid investment in the worst offenders. This Fund is the evolution of this process, accepting that we are now in a climate emergency and that charities want to take greater steps to ensure they are investing in a way that will benefit the planet.

The fund aims to have a carbon footprint substantially below that of the FTSE All Share Index. It will invest with Christian ethics, seeking out companies that contribute to the transition to a lower carbon economy and engaging with portfolio companies to encourage action that reduces the risk of climate change. It will exclude companies that extract or refine fossil fuels, those companies that have material involvement in supplying them with goods or services as well as those that do not meet our bespoke Christian ethical screening process.

The Fund will seek income and capital growth over a minimum 5 year period through investing mainly in UK companies.

David Palmer, Chief Executive, said in a statement: “Covid 19 has shown everyone just how quickly the world can change – and the sudden damage and disruption that can be caused to day-to-day life. It is rightly everyone’s immediate concern – but climate change remains the biggest long-term threat to our planet. The pandemic response also shows that rapid radical action in response to an existential threat is possible. That gives us hope for action on climate change.

“The Epworth Climate Stewardship Fund tackles the climate emergency head-on, letting UK charity trustees invest in a way that will help save the planet while targeting good long term investment returns.”