The King's Foundation, founded in 1990 by then-Prince Charles as the Institute of Architecture, champions traditional architecture and urban design that prioritizes communities. Renamed multiple times and becoming The King's Foundation in 2023 after Charles's ascension, it operates from Dumfries House in Ayrshire, Scotland—not London, despite educational hubs in Shoreditch, Trinity Buoy Wharf, and Chelsea's Garrison Chapel.
Over 35 years, it has engaged over 8,000 people in 100 projects, from Poundbury's 1992 urban extension to the 2015 Alder Hey Children's Hospital redevelopment, generating thousands of UK jobs. Key mergers include the 2018 consolidation of trusts handling heritage like Dumfries House, acquired in 2007, and custodianships of Highgrove Gardens and Castle of Mey.
Current efforts span education in crafts and furniture-making, heritage regeneration, and sustainable planning in 35 countries, such as Sierra Leone neighborhoods and Myanmar restorations. In 2024, it launched in Australia and hosted awards at St James's Palace. A 2025 Scottish regulator probe cleared trustees of wrongdoing but criticized past funding risks. Its 2023/24 impact report underscores work at royal sites turned public venues.