Building reliable, scalable high-value income
Fundraising performance is shaped by the organisation behind it. At Robson & Mitchell, we believe the biggest barriers to high-value income are rarely fundraising problems alone. They are often rooted in financial decisions, leadership behaviour, governance, organisational capacity and operational effectiveness.
That is why we work differently.
We are a specialist high-value income advisory helping charities and purpose-led organisations understand what is putting income at risk, where investment will have the greatest impact, and what needs to change to improve performance. We work across four areas:
Financial Reality
Understanding income risk, investment priorities and long-term sustainability.
Leadership & Governance
Strengthening decision-making, accountability and leadership involvement in high-value income.
Operational Capacity
Removing organisational barriers and ensuring teams have the capacity, systems and clarity to deliver.
Income Performance
Improving focus, discipline and execution across major donors, trusts, foundations and strategic partnerships.
Our work combines high-value fundraising expertise with organisational performance, HR and executive coaching. This allows us to address the behavioural, cultural and operational factors that often determine whether fundraising strategies actually succeed.
Rather than treating the symptoms of underperformance, we identify the root causes. The result is clearer investment decisions, stronger organisational capability and a more predictable, resilient approach to high-value income.
A different kind of fundraising advisory
We do not begin by asking, “How can you raise more?” We begin by asking:
What income is at risk?
What is preventing stronger performance?
Where is investment helping, and where is it not?
What organisational conditions need to change?
This enables leaders to focus resources where they will have the greatest impact and address problems before they become financial crises.
About Robson & Mitchell
Sarah Robson, Founder & Managing Director
Sarah is a high-value income performance specialist and understands the organisational conditions that underpin it. With extensive experience across high-value fundraising and organisational leadership, Sarah works with charities and purpose-led organisations to protect and grow major donor, trust, foundation and partnership income.
Before founding Robson & Mitchell in 2020, Sarah held senior fundraising leadership roles including Director of Fundraising at The Duke of Edinburgh's International Award Foundation, where she led an international fundraising team and oversaw a multi-million-pound income portfolio. Earlier roles included senior positions at The Prince's Trust and Save the Children.
Her client experience has included organisations such as Shelter, the Disasters Emergency Committee, Plan UK, National Emergencies Trust, Sailors' Society, The Africa Centre and Alde & Ore Estuary Trust. Sarah's approach combines fundraising strategy with financial, leadership and operational insight. She works with CEOs, trustees and executive teams to:
- identify and quantify income risk
- assess whether fundraising investment is being deployed effectively
- improve leadership and governance around high-value income
- remove organisational and operational barriers
- strengthen fundraising focus and execution
- build more resilient income models
Sarah is particularly focused on the growing connection between fundraising performance and organisational performance. For many charities, the challenge is no longer simply a funding problem. It is an operating model problem: increasing costs, limited capacity, changing donor expectations, pressure on leadership and the need to deliver more effectively with constrained resources.
Her work helps organisations respond by identifying efficiencies, improving investment decisions, modernising fundraising and operating models, and making practical use of technology where it adds genuine value. This includes considering how AI and other technologies can improve efficiency and decision-making while recognising that high-value fundraising will continue to depend on strong judgement, trusted relationships and skilled people.
Sarah also has a particular interest in developing the next generation of relationship management talent: fundraisers capable of building deep, long-term partnerships with donors, funders and strategic partners. Her advice is practical, evidence-led and commercially realistic, with a clear objective: to help organisations become more resilient, more effective and better equipped to protect and grow high-value income.