The Pilgrim Trust is a London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

-based charitable trust

Charitable trust

A charitable trust is an irrevocable trust established for charitable purposes, and is a more specific term than "charitable organization".-United States:...

. It was founded in 1930 by a two million pound grant by Edward Harkness

Edward Harkness

Edward Stephen Harkness was an American philanthropist. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio, one of four sons to Stephen V. Harkness, a harness-maker who invested in the forerunner of Standard Oil, John D. Rockefeller's oil company. Harkness inherited a fortune from his father...

, an American philanthropist. The trust's first secretary was former civil servant, Thomas Jones

Thomas Jones CH

Thomas Jones, CH was a British civil servant and educationalist, once described as "one of the six most important men in Europe", and also as "the King of Wales" and "man of a thousand secrets"....

.

Today, the trust makes grants of roughly 1.5 million pounds each year. Around 60% of these funds are given to preservation projects, particularly those aimed at preserving the fabric of architecturally or historically significant buildings, or those aimed at preserving historically interesting artifacts or documents. The trust has a particular interest in the preservation of historic churches and their contents. The remaining funds are allocated to social welfare causes, particularly projects which assist those misusing alcohol and drugs, and projects in prisons, including those that seek alternatives to custody.

Trustees

The trustees of the trust at present are:

• Lady Jay of Ewelme
  Michael Jay, Baron Jay of Ewelme
  Michael Hastings Jay, Baron Jay of Ewelme, GCMG is a former British diplomat and is currently Chairman of the House of Lords Appointments Commission.-Education:...
  
   CBE, Chairman
• Nicolas Barker OBE FBA, Deputy Chairman

• Lord Justice Moses
  Alan Moses
  Alan Moses is a Lord Justice of Appeal, a Court of Appeal Judge.He was born on 29 November 1945 and was educated at Bryanston School and University College, Oxford...
  
   PC
• Mark Jones (museum director)
  Mark Jones (museum director)
  Sir Mark Ellis Powell Jones is a British art historian, numismatist and museum director; he is director of the Victoria and Albert Museum...
  
  
• Tim Knox
• Paul Richards
  Paul Richards
  Paul Richards may refer to:* Paul Richards * Paul Richards , baseball player, manager, scout and executive* Paul Richards , American actor who starred in the ABC-TV 1963-64 series Breaking Point...
  
  
• Eugenie Turton CB
• Lord Cobbold
  David Antony Fromanteel Lytton-Cobbold, 2nd Baron Cobbold
  David Antony Fromanteel Lytton-Cobbold, 2nd Baron Cobbold, DL is one of the ninety hereditary peers elected to remain in the House of Lords after the passing of the House of Lords Act 1999 and replaced Myrtle Robertson, 11th Baroness Wharton on 15 October 2000.-Education and career:In keeping with...
  
   DL
• Dame Ruth Runciman
  Ruth Runciman
  Dame Ruth Runciman DBE is a former Chair of the UK Mental Health Act Commission.She is the mother of British political scientist David Runciman, and as wife of British sociologist Garry Runciman has the right to the title of Viscountess Runciman of Doxford, which she does not use...
  
   DBE
• Sir Richard Carew Pole Bt OBE DL