GAWSWORTH PARISH COUNCIL AS SOLE TRUSTEE

OBJECT OF THE TRUST:- The Trustee's ability to make a grant is governed by a Charity Commission Scheme under which the object of the Charity is to promote such charitable purposes for the general benefit of the inhabitants of the area of benefit, which in this case is the Parish of Gawsworth.

Applications for grants are invited from both organisations and individuals that reside in the Parish of Gawsworth. Click on the appropriate applicant category to download an application form pertinent to the type of grant you wish to apply for.

Contact with the Charity can be made via any Parish Councillor but it is usually through its own Clerk:-

Mrs Margaret Edwards
11 Lynalls Close
Congleton
Cheshire
CW12 4QN

Tel: 01260 299220

All charities are regulated by the Charity Commission and if any changes are made to a scheme or a charity's objective then the permission of the Charity Commission must be obtained. The latest statute governing all charities is the Charities Act 2006. For further information on the Charity Commission please refer to www.charity-commission.gov.uk .

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND IN BRIEF

According to excerpts from Parliamentary Reports on Gawsworth Charities issued by the Charity Commissioners in 1837, this charity was originally made up of a number of small charities which date back to at least the 18th century. These small charities were made up of bequests of money from various estates, which were to be invested in order to produce an income which was to be paid out to help the poor and uneducated in the Parish of Gawsworth. These excerpts are the only record held by the Parish Council concerning these charities.

At the time the trusts were set up parish matters were administered by the Overseers and Churchwardens of Gawsworth. By an Act of Parliament in 1893 all such Trusts / Charities became the responsibillity of the local authorities and the Parish Council as Trustee has administered these charities since that time.

In 1963 only three charities were registered with the Charity Commision under the following titles and it is indicated in the Governing Documents at the time that the other charities were absorbed within these three.

1. John Upton's Charity or Poor House Charity (219182)
2. The Upton Education Charity (528545)
3. The John Swaine Charity (240787)

The Upton Education Charity and the John Swaine Charity appear to have had no identifiable assets and on the advice of the Charity Commission were wound up in July 2005.

A new Scheme was set up for the remaining charity i.e. the John Upton Charity (Reg. No. 219182), on 12th July 2005 and this consisted of the land and five cottages at Moss Terrace, Off Penningtons Lane, Gawsworth, Macclesfield.

These cottages were sold on the advice of the Charity Commission on 4th December 2005, as they were not producing any income and therefore were not meeting the object of the Trust as referred to above. A memorandum to the new scheme being issued accordingly. The resulting capital has been invested and the interest on these investments is available for grant purposes in accordance with the new Scheme.

Click here for a more in depth version of the John Upton Charity's historical background.