The Council appoints some of the trustees of two independent local charities:
- the Richard Addison Charitable Trust (registered charity number 1014632).
- the Isles of Scilly Charitable Trust comprising the Edward McDonald Fund and the Pilots Widows Fund (registered charity number 207551).
The current clerk to both Trusts is Joseph Payne, a Council employee who undertakes these duties as part of his wider Council role. He is independently appointed by each Trust and is accountable to the trustees in carrying out his duties as clerk.
If you have any questions about either charity, please contact the clerk at joseph.payne@scilly.gov.uk or on 01720 424543.
Richard Addison Charitable Trust (RACT)
Richard Addison (1895-1979) was a St Mary’s flower grower and the son of Dr William Addison (1863-1949) who was a medical practitioner on the islands. Under his will, Richard left half his estate to generate an income to be expended by the Council ‘on welfare purposes… in particular for the benefit of the old folks of the islands’. Responsibility for administering the funds was transferred to an independent charitable trust in 1994, when the Richard Addison Charitable Trust was established in its current form.
Isles of Scilly Charitable Trust (IOSCT)
The IOSCT was formed in 2022 by the merger of the Edward McDonald Trust and the Pilots Widows Fund. The Edward McDonald Trust was established in the late 1940s from the estate of a St Mary’s banker while the Pilots Widows Fund could trace its origins to a public collection taken up after a ‘calamity at sea’ in the late eighteenth century.
Submitting an application
The RACT and the IOSCT have a shared application form.
Application form (PDF version)
Application form (Word version)
You can submit an application under one of three headings:
Heading 1: Crisis Payment scheme - Support for low-income households who have experienced financial shock or to prevent them from falling into crisis
Applications under Heading 1 will be considered by:
- the RACT if the household in question includes any persons of state pension age (i.e. 66 or over); or
- the IOSCT in all other cases.
Funding for grants awarded under Heading 1 has been provided by the Council of the Isles of Scilly and Cornwall Community Foundation through the Crisis and Resilience Fund.
Heading 2: Support for on-island activities or events that will enrich the lives of local residents
Applications under Heading 2 will be considered by:
- the RACT if the principal beneficiaries will be persons of state pension age (i.e. 66 or over); or
- the IOSCT in all other cases.
Heading 3: Support for charitable purposes associated with maritime endeavours on the islands
Applications under Heading 3 will be considered by the IOSCT.
Annual Reports and Accounts
RACT annual report and accounts, 2024-25
IOSCT annual report, 2024-25
IOSCT annual accounts, 2024-25
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