Report from the trustees as presented to the Annual Parish Meeting in April 2023.
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Waltham St Lawrence Charities are managed by six Village Trustees including Rob Lyman, the Chair of Trustees, who may be contacted at
See other articles on this page for:
- A History of the Waltham St Lawrence Charities
- Ralph Newbery
- The Bell Inn
- Waltham St Lawrence Charities - Chairman's Report
The Trustees would like to thank Mrs Margaret Railton from whose publication "Newbery & The Bell Inn" much of this information has been drawn.
The Waltham St Lawrence Charities in their present form are governed by Schemes of the Charity Commission dated 13 March 2009 and 12 April 2011. Prior to this revision, there were three distinct charities, each with its own funds and with different charitable purposes: the Foot, Knight and Newbery Relief in Need Charity, the Wandesford and How Educational Charity, and the Beale and Braybrooke Relief in Sickness Charity (previously the Dispensary Trust).
These charities had in turn evolved from other earlier charities established in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries and were named after the original benefactors. The earliest and most significant of these benefactors was Ralph Newbery, under the terms of whose will his son, Francis, in 1608 put the house which is now the Bell Inn into trust for the poor of the parish.
Now all the charities have been amalgamated into a single charity and the previously limited charitable purposes have been expanded to allow the Trustees of the Charities to promote any charitable purpose in the parish.
When Ralph Newbery made his will in 1603, he could not have foreseen that his bequest to the small Berkshire parish of Waltham St Lawrence would become so significant in the centuries to come.
He was born around 1535 in Waltham St Lawrence where members of his family had lived for many years. He grew up in the reign of Henry VIII, though Elizabeth I was on the throne when he left his native village to work in London. He was about 25 when he took over the book outlet of a late printer in Fleet Street and his printing and publishing business flourished he became printer to Elizabeth I and published many important books (perhaps akin to today's .com millionaires).
Built c1400 in the style of a Wealden house with a central recessed hall open to the roof and two-storied rooms on either side, the upper rooms jettied to the front & all built under a single roof.
A ceiling was inserted above the hall in about 1600 and a chimney stack built for fireplaces in both the hall and the new room above. Later, another stack was built in the parlour for fireplaces in that room and the room above.
The property remained a house for some 300 years, until the first mention of its change of use to an inn in 1723 when it was leased to one John Cumber, victualler. More recently, from 2004, brothers Iain & Scott Ganson have continued to develop trade and the pub has become renowned for its range of ever-changing real ales, excellent fare and convivial atmosphere.
Waltham St Lawrence Charities
Further Education Grants for 2023-24
The Waltham St Lawrence Charities will again this year be offering grants for further education. The Trustees wish to repeat that these grants are intended only for those who can demonstrate real need. Every application must accordingly be accompanied by a written explanation by the applicant as to why their particular circumstances justify their receiving a grant.
Application forms can be obtained from:
Chairman of Trustees, Rob Lyman, Morland House, Hungerford Lane, Berkshire RG10 0NY.
E-mail:
Applications for the 2023-24 academic year, together with the written justification mentioned above, must be submitted by 31 August 2023 at the latest.
As in previous years, the grants will be available only to people who are resident in the Parish of Waltham St Lawrence, have left school and are in, or soon to be in, further education or training.
Before a grant is paid a letter of acceptance from the university (or equivalent) will be required or, where the applicant is part of the way through a course, confirmation from the university (or equivalent) that the applicant has passed all relevant exams and is still on the course.
Before
