The charitable trust of the Sackler family, whose wealth is derived from the controversial opioid painkiller OxyContin, has deliberately withheld the identities of two organisations that received a combined £1.15 million in its latest accounts. The trust stated it took this action to protect the recipients from "serious prejudice" and to avoid impairing their charitable work.
Grants Amidst Ongoing Controversy
According to accounts filed on New Year's Eve, The Sackler Trust distributed £3.8 million to arts, education, and science bodies in 2024. This marks a continuation of its grant-making, which was publicly paused in 2019 only to quietly resume the following year. In total, 98 grants were issued in 2024, a significant increase from 69 the previous year.
While many prominent UK cultural institutions—including the National Gallery, Tate, and the Royal Opera House—have severed ties with the trust due to the Sacklers' links to the US opioid epidemic, other charities continue to accept funding. The largest publicly named beneficiaries in the latest filings were Veterans Aid and the Belvoir Cricket and Countryside Trust, each receiving £250,000.
The Shadow of Purdue Pharma
The trust's funds originate from the fortune amassed by the Sackler family through Purdue Pharma, the company that developed and aggressively marketed OxyContin. This marketing campaign is widely seen as having fuelled a devastating addiction crisis across the United States. In November, a US bankruptcy judge indicated he would approve a settlement requiring Sackler family members to contribute up to $7 billion to help address the opioid epidemic's toll.
Dame Theresa Sackler, widow of former Purdue co-owner Mortimer Sackler, continues to chair the trust. She served on the Purdue board from 1993 to 2018. Her three children are also trustees of the charity, which holds assets totalling £50 million.
Named Recipients and Reputational Risk
Other named recipients of grants worth £60,000 or more include a range of community and support organisations such as the Peterborough Asylum and Refugee Community Association, Waterlife Recovery Trust, and the mental health charity Living Room. The trust's accounts explicitly justify the secrecy surrounding the two major recipients, stating disclosure would cause them significant harm.
This practice of anonymising certain beneficiaries has been a feature of the trust's reporting for several years, reflecting the intense scrutiny and reputational damage associated with the Sackler name. Critics have long accused the family of using philanthropy for "reputation laundering." At the end of 2024, the trust was committed to future grants worth £7.4 million.
