Coal Trade Benevolent Association

The Coal Trade Benevolent Association (CTBA), founded on 23 July 1888 by members of the Colliery Agents and Coal Salesmen’s Association, is a national UK charity dedicated to providing compassionate financial relief to current and former non-manual workers in the coal distributive trade and allied industries—such as coal merchants, delivery persons, and clerical staff—along with their families and widows facing hardship from disability, ill health, or poverty. Rooted in solidarity and discretion, CTBA adapts to beneficiaries' evolving needs through volunteer-led casework, maintaining direct local contacts nationwide to support over 250 individuals annually with grants exceeding £286,000 in recent years, emphasizing dignity, thorough assessment, and continuity without paid staff or trustee remuneration.

It prioritizes poverty relief, aid for children and young people, elderly individuals, and those with disabilities via direct financial assistance, including one-off emergency payments for bills, regular weekly grants, winter fuel support (£100–£300 instalments), and seasonal gifts like birthday or Christmas allowances to cover essentials like utilities and living costs.

Eligible beneficiaries are UK-based individuals (or families/widows) tied to non-manual coal trade roles; organizations are ineligible. Applications, accepted unsolicited on a rolling basis via letter, website enquiry, or local branches, require proof of trade connection and hardship, with decisions typically within three weeks via trustee review of case visitor recommendations—no fixed deadlines or online portal.

CTBA distinctly excludes former mineworkers (directing them to CISWO), projects, core costs, capital items, or organisational funding, focusing solely on acute individual crises within this niche sector for swift, community-informed relief across England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.