FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE
The Weybridge Land Charity’s aim is to help Weybridge residents who are in financial need. It gives two types of grants – Christmas grants and Emergency Aid.
Christmas Grants
Application forms for these grants, which
can be as much as £270, are available from the Weybridge Day Centre and
Public Library every September and October. Completed forms need to be
returned by the end of October and payments are made by cheque in December.
Emergency Aid
This scheme provides funds for people facing
an emergency situation who are recommended to the Charity by the Citizen’s
Advice Bureau (CAB), health visitors or another approved agency. Funds are
available throughout the year to buy household appliances, furniture or
other essentials.
Please note:
The Charity does not accept any applications for credit-card or other debt
relief. All
emergency aid applications have to be recommended in writing by the CAB or another approved
agent: direct requests by applicants are not considered.
CONTACT (except for allotment lettings):
Howard Turner CPFA
Treasurer and
Clerk to the Weybridge Land Charity
Weybridge Land Charity
PO Box
730
Woking GU23 7LL .
CHURCHFIELDS ALLOTMENTS
The Charity also owns and operates Churchfields Allotments, which has a total of 167 plots. It has appointed the Weybridge Allotment Holders and Gardeners Association as its agent in the letting of the plots, collection of rents and general supervision of the site. It is the declared intention of the Managing Trustees to retain Churchfields as allotment land.
CONTACT:
Applications for allotments at Churchfields from residents of Weybridge and the surrounding area should be made at the Allotment Shop at the Curzon Road entrance on Saturdays & Sundays between 10 a.m. - 12 noon.
Yearly rents are from as little as £14 depending on the size of plot selected.
FORMATION IN 1811 -An Award was made in 1811 under the terms of the Weybridge and Byfleet Enclosure Act 1800, that parts of the waste and commons in the Parish of Weybridge amounting to 71 acres 3 roods 36 poles (being the present Weybridge Heath in Hanger Hill including the Cricket Ground, Heath Road, Brooklands Lane & Road and St. Georges Avenue) be set out for the use of occupiers of cottages within the Parish. Such occupiers would have the sole and exclusive right of using these commons and waste lands for pasture etc. That Award also established the Weybridge Poor’s Land Charity (now called Weybridge Land Charity) to oversee the operation of these rights and become the owner of the above lands.
REQUIREMENT FOR ALLOTMENTS -In 1882 the Government required all Charities, which owned land for the benefit of the poor to set aside land for allotments. To avoid any part of the Heath being used for allotments, a number of residents arranged for 10 acres of the Heath to be leased to them so as to provide the Trustees with sufficient funds whereby the Charity was able to lease alternative acreage for allotments being the land which forms the present Churchfields Allotments.
EXCHANGE OF LANDS - The Trustees realised that the Charity would be unable to raise sufficient funds to purchase the Churchfields Allotments at the expiry of the lease, so negotiations commenced with the former Weybridge Urban District Council. Accordingly, the Weybridge Urban District Council agreed in 1910 to purchase Churchfields Allotments and also land in Pine Grove (a total of 10 acres) for transfer to the Charity in exchange for the whole of the Charity’s land holding on Weybridge Heath on condition that the Council would also become the corporate Trustee of the Charity and therefore be responsible for its future administration.
ANNUAL DISTRIBUTIONS TO THE POOR -From 1910 to 1999 the Charity’s income was derived from allotment rents and a few investments, in roughly equal proportions. After providing for administration and management expenses, the remainder was distributed to the deserving poor who were resident in the Parish of Weybridge.
CURRENT ARRANGEMENTS - That position remained unaltered until 1992 when the Charity Commission approved a new Scheme whereby the local authority (Elmbridge Borough Council) agreed to surrender its role as corporate Trustee. The Charity now has a revised object and constitution with nine independent Managing Trustees to administer the Charity. Six of those Trustees (who need not necessarily be Council Members) are nominated by Elmbridge Borough Council and the remaining three by the Trustees.
The sale of the small Pine Grove allotment land holding in 1999, provided sufficient additional investment income to extend considerably the Charity’s work and enable it to have its own separate administration. Due to the previous historic lack of funding, the Charity has since undertaken considerable capital and improvement works at the Churchfields Allotments, which has made them more easily workable.
From 2002 the area of benefit was extended to comprise the whole of Weybridge as determined by the boundaries of the Local Government Wards of Weybridge North and South, Oatlands Park and St Georges Hill.
Published by the Managing Trustees of the Weybridge Land Charity – Registration Number 200270