The Worshipful Company of Tobacco Pipe Makers and Tobacco Blenders
The Tobacco Pipe Makers and Tobacco Trade Benevolent Fund
Supporting charitable activities is central to the work of our Livery Company. Each of our members is asked to make an annual donation to our Benevolent Fund. These donations (which can qualify for Gift Aid) provide the money to support our charitable giving.
The Tobacco Pipe Makers and Tobacco Trade Benevolent Fund was formed in 2010 through the merger of our Livery Company’s Benevolent Fund with the Tobacco Trade Benevolent Association (TTBA), first established in 1860.
The merged Funds are managed by a single Board of Trustees and are divided between a General Fund and a Welfare Fund.
The Charitable Aims and Objectives of the General Fund
Through the General Fund we are proud to support a number of charities on a regular basis where we feel our input will make a real difference. More information about some of these can be found below.
We provide financial support to promising students at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
Our members can request match-funding support from the General Fund for their own charitable fund-raising efforts, up to a maximum of £500 per request.
Click here to make an application for General Fund support. (Livery Members only.)
The Charitable Aims and Objectives of the Welfare Fund
Our Welfare Fund continues the work of the Tobacco Trade Benevolent Association by offering a helping hand to anyone who has worked in the tobacco trade in any capacity, or to their dependants. The Fund makes regular quarterly grants and one-off payments, subject to strict criteria and review.
All applications are considered on the basis of need and on length of service in the tobacco trade.
Click here to make an application for Welfare Fund support.
Arundel Castle Cricket Foundation
The Arundel Castle Cricket Foundation gives disadvantaged children and young adults the opportunity to take part in an annual programme of cricket tournaments, teamwork and coaching in Arundel Castle’s grounds in West Sussex.
Our Benevolent Fund supports two particular schemes.
Special Needs Programme
A programme for children and young adults with a variety of special needs and disabilities. Over 6,000 young people have made visits to Arundel and benefited from the scheme since it began in 2000. Many of them stay overnight, often experiencing their first time away from home.
Inner London Development Programme
A programme providing opportunities to young children living in London boroughs where opportunities for sporting activities, especially cricket, are often scarce. The Foundation works in partnership with another charity, Capital Kids, to target children from particularly deprived boroughs.
Barrow Farm Riding and Carriage Driving for the Disabled
Barrow Farm is a purpose-built riding centre in Essex and a dedicated Riding for the Disabled school. It enables people with special needs and disabilities to enrich their lives through horse riding and carriage driving. More than 100 children and adults each week enjoy riding or driving at Barrow Farm.
The Benevolent Fund makes annual donations to help with equipment, feed and running costs. We also provide funding to find horses that are particularly suited to being with children with special needs.
The late Past Master John J Adler MBE served on the Board of Trustees.
CCHF - All About Kids
CCHF All About Kids gives seriously disadvantaged 7 to 11 year olds from inner London a range of residential activity and respite breaks. The charity’s work improves the quality of children's lives and helps them to recognise their potential in a safe and happy environment.
Since being established in 1884 as ‘The Children’s Fresh Air Mission (Off to the Country)’, the charity has helped over two million children.
CCHF All About Kids’ income comes wholly from voluntary donations.
The Children’s Magical Taxi Tour
Every year a convoy of licensed London taxis take over 200 children, suffering from a range of chronic debilitating illnesses and life-limiting conditions, on a three-day trip of a lifetime to Disneyland in Paris. This Magical Taxi Tour, a unique charity event, has brought moments of great joy and happiness to sick children and their families.
Organised annually by the Worshipful Company of Hackney Carriage Drivers, dedicated taxi drivers give freely of their time and use of their vehicles. Sponsors give generously to cover the expenses of the trip. For some youngsters, the Magical Taxi Tour could be one of their last adventures, a once in a lifetime opportunity. But the tour is not just for these poorly children; the special trip also gives sorely-tested siblings and parents a real break, during which they don't have to think about anything except enjoying themselves.
More information can be found on www.magicaltaxitour.com
Guildhall School of Music & Drama, London
The Guildhall School of Music & Drama is one of the world's leading conservatoires and drama schools. It offers aspiring musicians, actors, stage managers and theatre technicians an inspiring environment in which to develop as artists and professionals. The School provides a wide range of scholarships to students from all over the world. These awards are supported by a variety of donors including City Livery Companies. The Benevolent Fund provides grants to help students assessed by the School as showing particular talent, potential or financial need.
S Pinter Youth Project
The S Pinter Youth Project engages socially isolated and financially disadvantaged children and young people, including children with special needs and disabilities, from minority ethnic communities in the London Boroughs of Hackney and Haringey. The project aims to help children, through social, leisure and educational out-of-school activities, to develop their physical, mental and emotional skills. The Benevolent Fund has funded specific projects to provide school holidays activities.
Bobath Centre for Children with Cerebral Palsy
The Bobath Centre is the UK’s leading cerebral palsy treatment and training charity, and is piloting an early intervention programme in London to detect and treat cerebral palsy in the very young. The longstanding medical view was that neurological conditions such as cerebral palsy could only be diagnosed once a child should have passed key development milestones. The early intervention programme, with early assessment and intensive therapy, can substantially mitigate the impact of cerebral palsy, resulting in improved outcomes.
PhysicsS3
PhysicsS3 (Success in Shortage Subjects) aims to improve the teaching of physics in schools. Set up in 2008, it focused on the important subject of physics because it was the most under-represented of the three sciences at A level and 70% of state secondary schools had no qualified physics teacher. The organisation works with schools to encourage local partnerships, often between state schools and local independent schools. It also delivers high quality training in particular schools where multi-school partnerships may be difficult to set up. The Benevolent Fund is providing financial support for specific programmes in deprived areas of London.
Mark Evison Foundation
The Mark Evison Foundation aims to promote the personal development of young people through challenges that will build confidence, strength, resilience and breadth. The Foundation invites young people to create from scratch and subsequently plan personal projects which are well outside their comfort zone, non-curricular and non-commercial. The Foundation provides mentoring and expenses for successful applicants.
http://www.markevisonfoundation.org/the-foundation/
Headquarters Company of the London Regiment, Territorial Army, Welfare Fund
The London Regiment is the only Territorial Army (TA) Infantry Battalion based in London, and the sole TA Battalion in the prestigious Household Division. It includes signallers, medics, armourers, vehicle mechanics, drivers, logistic experts, chefs and intelligence specialists. The London Regiment Headquarters Company supports the four Rifle Companies of the London Regiment and has a proud history of serving alongside the regular Army in Bosnia, the Balkans, Iraq and Afghanistan.
We provide financial support to the Headquarters Company’s Welfare Fund to sustain both servicemen and their families. We are always very proud to welcome representatives from Headquarters Company to our Livery dinners and functions.
The Oxford and Bermondsey Youth Club
Originally established as the Oxford Medical Mission in 1897, this youth club offers a range of sporting, creative and social activities for young people in Bermondsey, London, including residential and weekend camps.
The Oxford and Bermondsey Youth Club (OBC) aims to build confidence and spirit in individuals and communities through creative arts activities, particularly music and film. These activities give young people the opportunity to learn new skills and find a creative medium for self expression. OBC has a positive impact on those who attend, and is especially valuable for disadvantaged young people, including those who are at risk of offending, have a history of drug and alcohol misuse, or face other challenging issues.
The Benevolent Fund's support has previously enabled the club to refurbish its headquarters’ showers and canteen. In 2012 we funded the creative media suite to help the OBC engage with some of the hardest to reach groups, such as young offenders, looked-after children, drug and alcohol abuse groups, and young people involved with gangs.
Pembroke Academy of Music / Inclusive Dance Project
Pembroke Academy of Music (PAM) is an open access music project for around 50 children and young people aged 6 and above. PAM provides high-quality music tuition in a range of musical disciplines, at subsidised rates for all pupils in order to make tuition affordable to children who would otherwise not be able to afford it. Over 77% of parents say they would not be able to pay for music lessons elsewhere. Professional tutors teach music theory, practice and choral singing, to encourage a love of music and help students grow in confidence and teamwork. PAM has no lower skills limit.
Pembroke House Inclusive Dance Project enables learning-disabled young people aged 16-25 to grow in confidence and independence by learning movement and social motor skills through creative dance classes. It helps those disadvantaged by low expectations, low aspirations and limited opportunities for personal development. It consists of 60 sessions per year run by a qualified Leader, an assistant and 2 volunteers, supported by a live musician/drummer. The success/measurement of the outcome for each participant is recorded after each session by a detailed report which is then discussed with participants, parents/guardians to monitor patterns of behaviour both in and out of class.
More information can be found on www.pembrokehouse.org.uk/pam
The Sheriffs’ and Recorder’s Fund
This charity was created over 200 years ago and is focused on helping ex-prisoners get a new start in life. It helps to reduce re-offending by making grants for training, tools of trade, clothing and household equipment. The Sheriffs’ and Recorder’s Fund gives ‘small, practical and timely grants to ex-offenders on probation in Greater London’.
