The Wilson Larkins Charity
This charity is the amalgamation of two Henlow charities, being the James Wilson Charity and the William Larkins Charity. They were merged in 1969 as they had become too small to be operated efficiently separately.
The James Wilson Charity was formed under his will in 1795 with a bequest of £157, to “provide bread for the poor of the parish of Henlow” and the William Larkins charity was formed under his will in 1919 with £211 to provide for “distribution of coal annually at Christmas amongst all the poor old persons residing in the parish of Henlow.” Both charities were designated to be utilised across the entire parish.
The bread and coal continued to be distributed at Christmas until 1965 when less people were using coal as a heating source and the gift of a loaf of bread was thought rather irrelevant by the 1960s. In 1969 the Charities Commissioners agreed that as the aims and objectives of the two charities were similar, that they could merge. The revised remit then enabled the Trustees to “apply the clear income of the charities for the relief of poor persons in the parish of Henlow either in gifts in kind or grants of money.”
For many years no grants were made as the income was too small to make any grants and the income was reinvested. The value in 1969 of the investments held was around £220 and this amount was subsequently reinvested into a charity unit trust. With the addition of various donations and reinvestment, the value today is over £6,000. This amount cannot be touched only the income may be used for the payments of grants. Our income is lately between £200 and £300 annually depending upon the national interest rates.
With the variation in income, no grants were made in some years and the income is held over to subsequent years. Since the term “poor” is relative, compared to other parts of the underdeveloped world the UK is an affluent country. However, some people in the UK are poor compared to others in the UK, especially amongst single parent households and some of the elderly. It is these people that the Trustees tend to target.
Trustees get referrals from local schools who are able to identify which children are receiving free school meals. The Trustees have also made donations to another local charity towards the creation of hampers for distribution to the needy in Henlow, identified by Social Services in confidence.
The Trustees meet twice a year usually in spring and in autumn (to coincide with the receipt of interest from the investments) when decisions are made regarding distributions of aid.
If you, or you know of any persons living within the parish of Henlow who need our assistance, please apply to us. We can be contacted at the following address:
The Wilson and Larkins Charity, Louise House, 26 Newtown, Henlow SG16 6AJ Telephone: 01462 811783
We also welcome donations from kind individuals which can then be utilised to directly assist the needy or to re-invest further to produce more distributable income which will enable us to continue to do our work in relieving poverty within the parish of Henlow.