The Harpur Trust is a charity in

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. The stated aim of the charity is to help and support the people who live in and around Bedford, and to help them improve their lives by: * providing and promoting education * offering help and relief to anyone who is sick, in need, in hardship or distress * providing recreational facilities with a social welfare purpose for the people of Bedford and its surroundings. Reorganised as a company limited by guarantee in 2012, it was previously called The Bedford Charity (The Harpur Trust) as its legal name, but was most often referred to as the Harpur Trust. The main activities of the charity are the operation of a number of

independent school An independent school is independent in its finances and governance. Also known as private schools, non-governmental, privately funded, or non-state schools, they are not administered by local, state or national governments. In British Eng ...

s and one

academy An academy ( Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy ...

in Bedford. The charity also operates a number of

almshouse An almshouse (also known as a bede-house, poorhouse, or hospital) was charitable housing provided to people in a particular community, especially during the medieval era. They were often targeted at the poor of a locality, at those from certain ...

s in the Bedford area. In addition, the charity supports the community by giving grants to local projects. In 2009/10 it donated over £1,900,000 in grants to projects based in and around Bedford. This money is intended to help local organisations and individuals to make a difference to their own lives or those of others.

History

The Harpur Trust was established by Sir William Harpur (c.1496–1574). Harpur was a

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as indust ...

from Bedford who became Lord Mayor of

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in 1561. He was

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

ed in the following year. Sir William and his wife, Dame Alice, gave an endowment which consisted of some property in Bedford and of

water-meadows A water-meadow (also water meadow or watermeadow) is an area of grassland subject to controlled irrigation to increase agricultural productivity. Water-meadows were mainly used in Europe from the 16th to the early 20th centuries. Working water-m ...

which are now

Holborn Holborn ( or ) is a district in central London, which covers the south-eastern part of the London Borough of Camden and a part ( St Andrew Holborn Below the Bars) of the Ward of Farringdon Without in the City of London. The area has its roots ...

. It was to support free schooling,

dowries A dowry is a payment, such as property or money, paid by the bride's family to the groom or his family at the time of marriage. Dowry contrasts with the related concepts of bride price and dower. While bride price or bride service is a payment b ...

for poor maidens and “poore chylders ther to be nurryshed and enformed”. In 1566, the Bedford Charity endowed

Bedford School :''Bedford School is not to be confused with Bedford Girls' School, Bedford High School, Bedford Modern School, Old Bedford School in Bedford, Texas or Bedford Academy in Bedford, Nova Scotia.'' Bedford School is a public school (English indep ...

, which had been established in 1552, and founded "the Writing School" (later renamed

Bedford Modern School Bedford Modern School (often called BMS) is a Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference independent school in Bedford, England. The school has its origins in Bedford Charity, The Harpur Trust, born from the financial endowment, endowments le ...

) to teach copper plate handwriting. In 1764, the Harpur Trust was formally created by

Act of Parliament Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the Legislature, legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of ...

. It was not until 1882 that

girls' education Female education is a catch-all term of a complex set of issues and debates surrounding education (primary education, secondary education, tertiary education, and health education in particular) for girls and women. It is frequently called girls ...

was endowed by the trust.

Present day

Schools

Today the Harpur Trust runs a range of fee-charging private schools: *

for boys *

, co-educational *

Bedford Girls' School Bedford Girls' School (BGS) is an independent school for girls which opened in September 2010 located in Bedford, in the English county of Bedfordshire. The school is a result of a merger of Bedford High School and Dame Alice Harpur School, and ...

(The school was founded in 2010 as the result of the merger between Dame Alice Harpur School and Bedford High School) * Pilgrims Pre-Preparatory School, co-educational It is these schools run by the Bedford Charity that make Bedford famous for the quality of its private education . In March 2009, the charity confirmed it would enter the state education sector with the opening of a new

in Bedford:

Bedford Academy Bedford Academy (formerly John Bunyan Upper School) is a mixed secondary school and sixth form located in the Kingsbrook area of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England. The school mainly attracts pupils from the Kingsbrook, Cauldwell and Newnham ar ...

opened in September 2010, sponsored by the charity along with Bedford College.

Other activities

The Harpur Trust also owns

almhouses An almshouse (also known as a bede-house, poorhouse, or hospital) was charitable organization, charitable public housing, housing provided to people in a particular community, especially during the medieval era. They were often targeted at the p ...

in Bedford and the nearby

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

of Bromham. The Charity's endowment was valued at £53.9 million in June 2010 and it employs over 1,200 people in Bedford. Its current Chief Executive is David Steadman.

References

* * *

External links

Official siteHarpur Trust page from the Charity Commission
– includes links to annual reports {{authority control Independent schools in the Borough of Bedford 1566 establishments in England Charities based in Bedfordshire Educational charities based in the United Kingdom Charities for the elderly based in the United Kingdom