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Back
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Person Code
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NA21562
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Corporate Name
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Carnegie United Kingdom Trust
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Activity
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The Trust was established at Dunfermline with a capital fund of 10 million dollars. Its purpose was `the improvement of the well-being of the masses of the people of Great Britain and Ireland'. Board members were drawn from the already established Carnegie Dunfermline Trust together with others from a diverse range of backgrounds. Administration was directed by an executive committee and various specialist committees, and there were a salaried treasurer and secretary. Because of the large number of competing claims for Trust funds, policy came to be reviewed every 5 years.
The Trust's first major success was in the development of the library movement. They began by commissioning a major enquiry (Adams Report, 1914), and over the next 2 decades devoted more than a third of their funds to the establishment of the county library service, various specialist libraries, and services such as inter-library lending, professional training and the Library Association. Following major reports of 1928 and 1938 on museums, assistance was given to the Museums Association. Other early educational ventures included support for the Workers' Educational Association and for adult education colleges at Harlech (1926) and Newbattle (1937).
Between the wars the Trust also involved itself strongly in social and community work. In partnership with the National Council of Social Service, it promoted the process of co-ordinating the welfare work of voluntary organisations. The Trust also aided the establishment of rural community councils, through which it supported the building of more than 2,000 village halls (1930-1962) to act as focal points for rural life. In urban areas help was given to the National Playing Fields Association, which established over 1,000 recreation grounds in densely populated areas between 1928 and 1935. Young people benefited from grants to youth clubs, young farmers' clubs and the Youth Hostel Association. From 1936 to 1939 the Trust experimented with a land settlement programme which aimed to turn unemployed workers into agricultural small holders acting on a co-operative basis.
Before the formation of the state-funded Arts Council in 1945, the Trust took a lead in encouraging cultural activities. Early projects included music publication schemes and help in re-opening the Old Vic Theatre (1928) and Saddlers' Wells (1931). In the 1930s the Trust developed a policy of systemic support for amateur drama and music, and worked particularly closely with the National Federation of Music Societies.
The Second World War was a difficult time for the Trust as they were forbidden by the Trust Deed from employing funds on projects `which would lend countenance to war'. One major achievement was the establishment of a system of county music and drama committees backed by professional county organisers and administered from 1946 to 1950 by the Carnegie Committee for Music and Drama. After the war the Trust took the lead in creating a Drama Board (1949), which provided recognised qualifications for local tutors of drama. From 1950 to 1970 grants were also made to schools of tuition for members of amateur painting clubs.
Adult education continued to attract support from the Trust, particularly the Bureau of Current Affairs, which from 1945 to 1951 disseminated information to local discussion groups. Focus then shifted to helping voluntary societies to meet the shortcomings of the Welfare State. A family welfare policy was adopted, involving close liaison with the National Councils of Social Service, support for the training of social workers, and the funding of a variety of organisations including new Family Welfare Units. Help for the handicapped included assistance to the National Association for Mental Health and a substantial grant towards the first communal Cheshire Foundation Home for the disabled (1954).
Local communities benefited from the re-introduction of the village halls policy. There was support for the training of community workers, and in the 1960s, after the publication of the Nicholson Report, grants were made to set up community centres in new towns and housing estates. At the same time the Albemarle Report heralded developments in the Trust's youth policy, including grants for youth movements involved in voluntary service, particularly Community Service Volunteers.
From the late 1950s the Trust expanded its countryside concerns. Grants were made for the support of the Conservation Corps and its successors, and for the establishment of numerous adventure and countryside centres. After 1969 the Trust was also active in aiding conservation trusts on the recommendation of the Society for the Promotion of Nature Reserves.
Support for welfare and community services remained strong and broadly based. Arts policy continued to be directed mainly towards the encouragement of amateur groups. But, increasingly, policy development brought together previously separate aspects of the Trust's work. Help for the disabled and disadvantaged began to include a strong emphasis on the therapuetic value of music and drama. A major Trust report on this subject was published in 1985. Similarly, the Trustees decided from 1975 to merge their countryside and local history policies into a general `heritage' policy, designed not only to promote appreciation of the environment but also to encourage interest in preservation.
In response to the problem of very high unemployment in Scotland in the 1980s, the Trust has since 1981 administered on behalf of the Scottish Office the Unemployment Action Fund. This fund supports voluntary work which benefits the whole community, but particularly the young unemployed.
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Dates
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1913-
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Subordinate
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Dunfermline
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Associated records
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| NRAS2054/CDT | Carnegie Dunfermline Trust, Dunfermline, Fife | 1747-1978 |
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