Gurney Charitable Trust

The Gurney Charitable Trust, established in 1990 by Dr M J T Gurney and family under a Declaration of Trust, is a family-led grant-giving charity dedicated to advancing public benefit through discretionary financial donations to charitable purposes. Managed by family trustees to preserve the founder's ethos, it operates as a generalist funder with a regional focus on Sussex, Gloucestershire, Buckinghamshire, and the northern Lake District. Its core values emphasize responsible stewardship, transparency, and responsive giving aligned with contemporary needs, sustaining annual distributions from investment income without rigid thematic or sectoral restrictions beyond charity law requirements.

The Trust supports a broad spectrum of charitable activities, including project funding, core costs, and other general donations to registered charities demonstrating need and impact within its geographic priorities. Recent statutory filings reveal grants to diverse institutions, from small grassroots groups to larger organizations, without emphasis on specific causes, beneficiary groups, or programmes—prioritizing flexibility over targeted strategies.

Eligible applicants are strictly UK-registered charities operating in the specified regions, with no income thresholds, size limits, or religious restrictions. Unsolicited applications are not accepted; grants are awarded at trustees' discretion to organizations identified through their networks. There are no fixed deadlines, application rounds, or published typical grant ranges—decisions occur ad hoc via unscheduled trustee meetings, adjusting to investment income and priorities. Distinctive for its family continuity, regional exclusivity, and purely discretionary model, the Trust avoids exclusions beyond legal charitable purposes, positioning it as a selective supporter for aligned regional charities.