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Scott Trust Limited is the British company that owns
Guardian Media Group Guardian Media Group plc (GMG) is a British-based mass media company owning various media operations including ''The Guardian'' and ''The Observer''. The group is wholly owned by the Scott Trust Limited, which exists to secure the financial and e ...
and thus ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' and ''
The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...
'' as well as various other media businesses in the UK. In 2008, it replaced the Scott Trust, which had owned ''The Guardian'' since 1936. The company is responsible for appointing the editor of ''The Guardian'' (and those of the group's other main newspapers) but, apart from enjoining them to continue the paper's editorial policy on "the same lines and in the same spirit as heretofore", it has a policy of not interfering in their decisions. The arrangement tends to give editors a long tenure: for example, the last incumbent,
Alan Rusbridger Alan Charles Rusbridger (born 29 December 1953) is a British journalist, who was formerly editor-in-chief of ''The Guardian'' and then principal of Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford. Rusbridger became editor-in-chief of ''The Guardian'' in 1995, hav ...
, was there from 1995 until 2015. The current chairman of the Scott Trust Board is Alex Graham, who replaced
Liz Forgan Dame Elizabeth Anne Lucy Forgan, DBE (born 31 August 1944) is an English journalist, and radio and television executive. Early life Forgan was educated at Benenden School, Kent, and St Hugh's College, Oxford, then an all-female college. She ini ...
in 2016. Other board members include the current editor-in-chief
Katharine Viner Katharine Sophie Viner (born January 1971)Katharine Vine"Dear diary ..." ''The Guardian'', 27 November 2004 is a British journalist and playwright. She became the first female editor-in-chief at ''The Guardian'' on 1 June 2015 succeeding Alan ...
, Guardian finance editor Nils Pratley who is the journalist director of the board, and one member of the Scott family. The Scott Trust is a limited partner in GMG Ventures LP, founded in 2017, according to the GMG 2018 annual report, "this £42m venture capital fund is designed to contribute financial returns and to support GMG’s strategy by investing in early stage businesses focused on developing the next generation of media technology".


History


1936–1948

The Trust was established in 1936 by
John Russell Scott John Russell Scott (12 July 1879 – 5 April 1949) was a British publisher. He was the owner of the '' Manchester Guardian'' and the ''Manchester Evening News''. Early life Scott was born in Manchester, the third child of C. P. Scott and his wi ...
, owner of the ''Manchester Guardian'' (as it then was) and the ''
Manchester Evening News The ''Manchester Evening News'' (''MEN'') is a regional daily newspaper covering Greater Manchester in North West England, founded in 1868. It is published Monday–Saturday; a Sunday edition, the ''MEN on Sunday'', was launched in February 201 ...
''. After the deaths in quick succession of his father
C. P. Scott Charles Prestwich Scott (26 October 1846 – 1 January 1932), usually cited as C. P. Scott, was a British journalist, publisher and politician. Born in Bath, Somerset, he was the editor of the ''Manchester Guardian'' (now ''the Guardian'') ...
and brother
Edward Edward is an English given name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortune; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-Sa ...
, and consequent threat of
death duties An inheritance tax is a tax paid by a person who inherits money or property of a person who has died, whereas an estate tax is a levy on the estate (money and property) of a person who has died. International tax law distinguishes between an es ...
, John Scott wished to prevent future death duties forcing the closure or sale of the newspapers, and to protect the liberal editorial line of the ''Guardian'' from interference by future proprietors. The first and only Chairman of the first Trust was John Scott.


1948–2008

The Trust was dissolved and reformed in 1948, as it was thought that the Trust, under the terms of the original Trust Deed, had become liable to tax due to changes in the law. At this time John Scott also gave up his exclusive right to appoint trustees; the trustees would henceforth appoint new members themselves. Five months after the signing of the new Trust Deed, John Scott died. After three years of legal argument, the
Inland Revenue The Inland Revenue was, until April 2005, a department of the British Government responsible for the collection of direct taxation, including income tax, national insurance contributions, capital gains tax, inheritance tax, corporation ta ...
gave up its claim for death duty. The eight initial trustees of the 1948 Trust were all connected with the Manchester Guardian and Evening News, Ltd., and included four of C. P. Scott's grandsons as well as the then editor of the ''Guardian'',
A. P. Wadsworth Alfred Powell Wadsworth (26 August 1891''1939 England and Wales Register'' – 4 November 1956) was a British journalist, author, and editor of ''The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Ma ...
. It has become normal practice for a ''Guardian'' journalist to be a member of the trust, though they are not considered to be a "representative" of the staff, as this may result in a conflict of interests. In 1992, the Trust identified its central objective as being the following: :"To secure the financial and editorial independence of ''The Guardian'' in perpetuity: as a quality national newspaper without party affiliation; remaining faithful to its liberal tradition; as a profit-seeking enterprise managed in an efficient and cost-effective manner." The Trust saw its main functions as being the following: *"To secure the Trust's own continuity by renewing its membership and by dealing with threats to its existence *To monitor the organisation, financial management and overall strategy of the Group, holding the Board accountable for its performance *To appoint and 'in extreme circumstances' to dismiss the editors of ''The Guardian'', the ''Manchester Evening News'' (and ''The Observer'' after its acquisition in 1993) *To act as a 'court of appeal' in the event of any dispute between the editorial and managerial sides of the operation." The second Trust had five Chairmen over its 60 years: Alfred Powell Wadsworth (1948–56), Richard Farquhar Scott (1956–84),
Alastair Hetherington Hector Alastair Hetherington (31 October 1919 – 3 October 1999) was a British journalist, newspaper editor and academic. For nearly twenty years he was the editor of ''The Guardian'', and is regarded as one of the leading editors of the secon ...
(1984–89),
Hugo Young Hugo John Smelter Young (13 October 1938 – 22 September 2003) was a British journalist and columnist and senior political commentator at ''The Guardian''. Early life and education Born in Sheffield into an old recusant Roman Catholic family, h ...
(1990–2003) and Liz Forgan.


The Scott Trust Limited: 2008–present

In October 2008, it was announced that the trust was being wound up and its assets transferred to a new limited company named "The Scott Trust Limited" to ''strengthen the protection it offers to the Guardian'' and because '' ke all non-charitable trusts, and unlike limited companies, the Scott Trust has a finite lifespan''. The core purpose of the Trust was enshrined in the constitution of the Limited company and "cannot be altered or amended." The new company is barred from paying dividends, and "its constitution has been carefully drafted to ensure that no individual can ever personally benefit from the arrangements." In February 2010, the company announced the sale of its GMG Regional Media arm and its regional print titles to the Trinity Mirror Group. The regional titles comprised the ''
Manchester Evening News The ''Manchester Evening News'' (''MEN'') is a regional daily newspaper covering Greater Manchester in North West England, founded in 1868. It is published Monday–Saturday; a Sunday edition, the ''MEN on Sunday'', was launched in February 201 ...
'' and 31 others in the North West and South of England. The sale was finalised on 28 March 2010 and ended the Scott Trust's association with regional newspapers. In 2012 the Scott Trust Limited became a co-founder of the
European Press Prize The European Press Prize is an award programme for excellence in journalism across all 47 countries of Europe. It was founded in 2012 by seven European media foundations: The Guardian Foundation, Thomson Reuters Foundation, Jyllands-Posten Found ...
. Guardian News and Media, a subsidiary of the Scott Trust Limited, reported a loss of £30.9 million for the year to the end of April 2013. The company via the Guardian Media Group (GMG, a subsidiary company) completed the sale for £619 million of its 50.1% stake in '' Auto Trader'' on 4 March 2014.
Apax Partners Apax Partners LLP is a British private equity firm, headquartered in London, England. The company also operates out of six other offices in New York, Hong Kong, Mumbai, Tel Aviv, Munich and Shanghai. As of December 2017, the firm, including its ...
, a venture capital firm, increased its share to become the sole shareholder in the business. The £619 million earned from the sale of ''Auto Trader'' adds to the £253.7 million of cash and investments which GMG published in its 2013 annual report. This leaves an investment fund which is likely to be in excess of £850 million to underwrite ''Guardian'' losses. In December 2014, it was announced that
Alan Rusbridger Alan Charles Rusbridger (born 29 December 1953) is a British journalist, who was formerly editor-in-chief of ''The Guardian'' and then principal of Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford. Rusbridger became editor-in-chief of ''The Guardian'' in 1995, hav ...
, then ''Guardian'' editor-in-chief, would succeed Forgan as the Chairman of the company in 2016 but he unexpectedly announced on 13 May 2016 his resignation as a director. As of January 2016, the company's funds were £740m, down from £838.3m in July 2015. As of 1 April 2018, the value of the Scott Trust Endowment Fund was £1.01 billion, down slightly from £1.03bn in 2017.


Governance

Scott Trust Limited was incorporated on 24 September 2008 as ''Scott Place 1001 Limited'', and adopted its current name on 3 October 2008; its number is 06706464 and it is a
company limited by shares A private company limited by shares is a class of private limited company incorporated under the laws of English law, England and Wales, Northern Irish law, Northern Ireland, Scots law, Scotland, certain Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth c ...
. The Scott Trust Limited is governed according to the
articles of association In corporate governance, a company's articles of association (AoA, called articles of incorporation in some jurisdictions) is a document which, along with the memorandum of association (in cases where it exists) form the company's constituti ...
, set up in 2008 and filed at
Companies House Companies House is the executive agency of the company registrars of the United Kingdom, falling under the remit of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. All forms of companies (as permitted by the Companies Act) are i ...
. The articles say that the
board of directors A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organiz ...
must guard editorial independence. The board appoints itself under article 63, through an appointments committee. Neither workers at the newspapers nor readers participate in voting for board members. Such voting could be allowed with 75% approval of the existing board of directors under article 7.


The Scott Trust Board


Current members


Past members


The Guardian Foundation

Besides the GMG businesses, the company has a charitable wing: The Guardian Foundation led by Executive Director Kelly Walls. Its registered charity number is 1153865.


References


External links

*
Corporate details
from
Companies House Companies House is the executive agency of the company registrars of the United Kingdom, falling under the remit of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. All forms of companies (as permitted by the Companies Act) are i ...
{{Authority control Publishing companies of the United Kingdom The Guardian Publishing companies established in 1936 Guardian Media Group 1936 establishments in the United Kingdom