History

The origins of the Charity date can be traced back to 1322 when John de Brokenborough established a ‘chantry’ or Trust consisting of private land, the rents from which were to be used to support a priest whose task was to sing Mass for the souls of the founder and his family and all departed Christian souls. The original endowment amounted to 66s 8d (about £3–18p). This formed the original Church Lands Charity as constituted in the Trust Deed of 1457. The income was to be used solely for the maintenance and repair of the parish church in Almondsbury.

In 1892 a new Trust Deed was drawn up and the Church Lands Charity was amalgamated with the charities established by Edward Tirrell (1683), Thomas Jefferis ( 1717) and John Silcox (1741) whose income was to be used to help the poor people of Almondsbury. At this time the capital value was £400, half of which still consisted of land.

In the 1970s the Trustees obtained planning permission for houses to be built on allotments which the Charity owned in Patchway. This coincided with the government decision to widen the A38 and build the flyover near the railway bridge. Consequently, the land was subject to a compulsory purchase order and, after the deduction of legal expenses, the Charity benefited by £150,000.