Grent Trust Limited
Belfast grant-making company founded in 1979, funded by investment income including freehold land at Davyhulme, Trafford; it gives small grants to UK charities, including £2,000 to the Ireland and Northern Ireland branch of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem in 2023
| Grent Trust Limited
| |
|---|---|
| Type | Charitable company limited by guarantee (Northern Ireland) |
| Founded | 1979-12-31 (incorporated); 2014-10-08 (registered with CCNI) |
| Registration ID | NI charity 100264; company NI014040; HMRC XN 56712 |
| Headquarters | c/o Sumer Accountants NI Ltd, Glendinning House, 6 Murray Street, Belfast BT1 6DN |
| Area served | UK; register also lists Israel, Liberia, Uganda |
| Website | http://www.grenttrust.co.uk |
Grent Trust Limited is a Northern Ireland charitable company, incorporated on 31 December 1979 and registered with the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland on 8 October 2014.[1][2] Its report says that "Grants are only made to other UK registered charities" and that the directors support "religous organisations, medical charities and Third World relief".[3] Its income comes entirely from investments, including freehold land in Trafford, Greater Manchester.[3][4]
Objects and activities
The register states: "The charity's objects are specifically restricted to making donations or subscribing money to or for any charity or charities or charitable purpose or purposes." Regions: UK, Israel, Liberia, Uganda.[1]
The report lists the mission as including "to support the growth of local and Christian charties" and "to improve the physical, mental and spiritual well-being of people". The trust "does not make grants to persons or organisations that apply speculatively".[3]
Trustees
Directors at Companies House (also the trustees on the register), with month and year of birth:[2][1]
| Trustee | Appointed | Chair | Other |
|---|---|---|---|
| David Houston | 2007 | D A Houston; public contact | |
| Michael Bell | 2012 | M Bell OBE (CSci FIFST on register) | |
| Paul Ritchie | 2012 |
Historical trustees
Former directors at Companies House include David Franklin Adair (1999–2011), Susan Patricia Crowe (2010–2018), Harold Francis Minion (2008–2016) and Ryan James Stewart Price (2007–2009). Earlier directors with no appointment date recorded are William Dennis Bell, John C Houston, Robert A Houston and James Michael Boyd.[2]
Finances
| Financial year end | Income | Expenditure |
|---|---|---|
| 2021-12-31 | £147,725 | £84,329 |
| 2022-12-31 | £143,510 | £101,415 |
| 2023-12-31 | £140,280 | £98,649 |
| 2024-12-31 | £153,444 | £87,809 |
Source: accounts for 2022, 2023 and 2024 (with comparatives).[3][5][6]
Income in 2024 was £153,444, all from investments (2023: £140,280). Expenditure was £87,809, including costs of raising funds of £54,285 and grants of £17,000.[3] Funds at 31 December 2024 were £1,303,444, including investment property valued at £686,733 "by the directors on advice from external valuers". Trade debtors of £85,752 are shown after "a bad debt provision of £68,000".[3] The independent examiner was Amanda McMaw FCA of Sumer Accountants NI Ltd, which also provides the registered office and secretarial services.[3]
| Recipient | 2023 (£) | 2024 (£) |
|---|---|---|
| One Equine Trust | – | 10,000 |
| Cancer Focus NI | – | 7,000 |
| Fields of Life | 9,000 | – |
| ICEJ – Ireland & NI Branch | 2,000 | – |
| Corrymeela | 2,000 | – |
| TEAR Fund | 2,000 | – |
| Concern Worldwide | 2,000 | – |
| Alzheimers Research UK, Barnardos, Blood Cancer UK, MS Society NI, Prison Fellowship NI, Versus Arthritus | 2,000 each | – |
| Total | 29,000 | 17,000 |
Funding in Israel
The only Israel-related grant found is £2,000 in 2023 to the Ireland and Northern Ireland branch of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ), recorded as a grant to a UK registered charity.[3] The register lists Israel as an area of operation.[1]
Israeli partners
No Israeli body directly. The ICEJ grant was to its Irish/Northern Ireland branch.[3]
Activity beyond the Green Line and support for the IDF
Findings are graded by confidence. "Partner" findings concern the recipient organisation, not proven use of the charity's funds.
| Finding | Confidence |
|---|---|
| £2,000 (2023) to the Irish/Northern Ireland branch of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem; no project or place is named.[3] | Not established |
Support for the IDF: No IDF or military funding is stated.[3]
Controversies and regulatory action
- No CCNI inquiry report or Gazette insolvency notice naming the charity was found. The Gazette results are routine Belfast Gazette filing lists.[7]
- Grant total misstated. The 2024 report says "The Trust was able to allocate grants of £29,000 for the year", but note 7 shows £17,000 for 2024; £29,000 was the 2023 figure, and the sentence appears unchanged from the 2023 report.[3][5]
- Spending on grants. In 2024, grants (£17,000) were about 11% of income and less than a third of the cost of raising funds (£54,285).[3]
Other registers and records
Scotland and Northern Ireland
CCNI registration 100264. Returns "Received: on time"; 3 trustees, no employees.[1] No Scottish or England and Wales registration was found.[8]
The Gazette
The Gazette results for "Grent Trust" are routine Belfast Gazette companies-registry supplements. There is no insolvency notice.[7]
Grants recorded by 360Giving
No grants to or from the charity are published in 360Giving data.[9]
Sanctions screening
The charity's name and its current and former directors were screened. No match was found.[10]
Land and property
- Freehold title GM224175, land on the north side of Davyhulme Road, Davyhulme (Trafford): proprietor GRENT TRUST LIMITED, 16 Donegall Square South, Belfast, dated 6 October 1980. The 2024 accounts show investment property of £686,733.[4][3]
- No title registers were bought.[4]
Parliament
Hansard exact-phrase searches for "Grent Trust" returned no contributions.[11]
Web archive
The Internet Archive holds captures of grenttrust.co.uk from 2009 to 2024.[12]
External links
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Charity Commission for Northern Ireland, Grent Trust Limited (100264) Register of Charities, retrieved 20 October 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Companies House, GRENT TRUST LIMITED (NI014040): officers and company overview, retrieved 20 October 2026.
- ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 Charity Commission for Northern Ireland, Grent Trust Limited: Report and financial statements, year ended 31 December 2024 (PDF), retrieved 20 October 2026.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 HM Land Registry, UK companies that own property in England and Wales (CCOD) and Overseas companies (OCOD) datasets, October 2026 full files, searched by proprietor name and company number. No title registers were purchased.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Charity Commission for Northern Ireland, Grent Trust Limited: Report and financial statements, year ended 31 December 2023 (PDF), retrieved 20 October 2026.
- ↑ Charity Commission for Northern Ireland, Grent Trust Limited: financial statements, year ended 31 December 2022 (PDF), retrieved 20 October 2026.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 The Gazette: notices matching 'Grent Trust' and the insolvency notice feed, The Gazette (London, Edinburgh and Belfast editions), searched 20 October 2026.
- ↑ Charity Commission for England and Wales, Register of Charities public extract (charity table), extract dated 14 October 2026; searched by name and by the Scottish/Northern Ireland charity names in this batch – no England and Wales registration was found.
- ↑ 360Giving API, grants received by GB-NIC-100264; GB-COH-NI014040, 360Giving, queried 20 October 2026 – 0 grants returned.
- ↑ Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, UK Sanctions List (CSV, downloaded 17 October 2026); Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation, Consolidated List of Financial Sanctions Targets (ConList.csv, 17 October 2026). Screening for the Scotland/Northern Ireland batch covered 93 name strings (the 12 charity names, current and former register trustees, trustees and officers named in the accounts read, and Companies House officers); no full-name match was found and 2,208 surname- or token-only hits were reviewed and rejected.
- ↑ UK Parliament, Hansard search API: contributions matching the exact phrase "Grent Trust" Hansard, queried 20 October 2026 (Spoken and Written endpoints; quoted-phrase searches for "Grent Trust"). 0 contributions.
- ↑ Internet Archive Wayback Machine, CDX index queried 20 October 2026 – grenttrust.co.uk: 8 years with successful captures, first 2009-11-05, latest 2024-08-16.