The Richmond Charities is an

almshouse An almshouse (also known as a bede-house, poorhouse, or hospital) is charitable housing provided to people in a particular community, especially during the Middle Ages. They were often built for the poor of a locality, for those who had held ce ...

charity based in

Richmond, London Richmond is a town in south-west London,The London Government Act 1963 (c.33) (as amended) categorises the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames as an Outer London borough. Although it is on both sides of the River Thames, the Boundary Commis ...

. Its origins date back to 1600. The charity provides

affordable housing Affordable housing is housing which is deemed affordable to those with a household income at or below the median, as rated by the national government or a local government by a recognized housing affordability index. Most of the literature on ...

for people in housing need. It also administers two relief-in-need welfare charities, a relief-in-sickness charity and a very small charity that awards small quarterly grants to four deserving spinsters. The almshouses are for local people aged over 65, who are of limited means and require an improvement in their living conditions. The charity's area of benefit is

London Borough of Richmond upon Thames The London Borough of Richmond upon Thames () in south-west Greater London, London, England, forms part of Outer London and is the only London boroughs, London borough on both sides of the River Thames. It was created in 1965 when three smaller ...

, in which the majority of the almshouse residents will have been living at the time of their appointment, but limited provision is made for the appointment of residents irrespective of their former place of residence. Preference is given to applicants living in private rented property. As recently as 1943, residents of the almshouses received a monthly allowance of £2 5s. (£2.25p), together with three

ton Ton is any of several units of measure of mass, volume or force. It has a long history and has acquired several meanings and uses. As a unit of mass, ''ton'' can mean: * the '' long ton'', which is * the ''tonne'', also called the ''metric ...

s of coal a year, a dress or suit of clothes every other year, or a

greatcoat A greatcoat (also watchcoat) is a large, woollen overcoat designed for warmth and protection against wind and weather, and features a collar that can be turned up and cuffs that can be turned down to protect the face and the hands, while the Cap ...

every fifth year. Pensions continued to be paid for some years, but the position has now entirely changed, in that, where necessary, residents receive financial support within the state welfare system. They pay for the provision of central heating, where this is provided, and in addition pay a subsidised weekly maintenance contribution (WMC) towards the maintenance of the almshouses. Residents pay their own household bills. They occupy the almshouses as beneficiaries of a charitable trust and do not have

security of tenure Security of tenure is a term with multiple meanings according to jurisdiction. In Australia, it is used in political science to describe a constitutional or legal guarantee that a political office-holder cannot be removed from office except in ex ...

. There are no longer any qualifications with regard to gender or religion. The Richmond Charities has an endowment that has to be used for the benefit of its residents.

The almshouses

File:Richmond, Bishop Duppa's Almhouses.jpg, Bishop Duppa's Almshouses File:The Church Estate Almshouses, Sheen Road, Richmond- architectural detail (geograph 2316683).jpg, Church Estate Almshouses File:Almshouses, East Sheen - geograph.org.uk - 1227748.jpg,

Hickey's Almshouses Hickey's Almshouses are almshouses between Sheen Road and St Mary's Grove in Richmond, London. A plaque over the entrance records that the almshouses were built "for Ten poor Men and Ten poor Women by the bounty of William Hickey Esq. Who by ...

File:HoublonsAlmshouses.jpg, Houblon's Almshouses File:Richmond, Michel's Almshouses.jpg,

Michel's Almshouses Michel's Almshouses are Listed building, Grade II listed almshouses in Richmond, London, located in The Vineyard, Richmond, The Vineyard, opposite Bishop Duppa's Almshouses, Richmond, Bishop Duppa's Almshouses and Queen Elizabeth's Almshouses, ...

File:Richmond, Queen Elizabeth's Almshouses.jpg, Queen Elizabeth's Almshouses The Richmond Charities manages 145 almshouses on 13 sites in Richmond,

Twickenham Twickenham ( ) is a suburban district of London, England, on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historic counties of England, Historically in Middlesex, since 1965 it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, who ...

and

Mortlake Mortlake is a suburban district of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames on the south bank of the River Thames between Kew and Barnes, London, Barnes. Historically it was part of Surrey and until 1965 was in the Municipal Borough of Barnes ...

. They include 50 at

; nine at Houblon's Almshouses; ten at Bishop Duppa's (founded by

Brian Duppa Brian Duppa (also spelled Bryan; 10 March 1589 – 26 March 1662) was an English bishop, chaplain to the royal family, Royalist and adviser to Charles I of England. Life He was educated at Westminster School and Christ Church, Oxford, graduati ...

, Bishop of Chichester); four at Queen Elizabeth's; 18 at

; five at Benn's Walk; 18 at Church Estate Almshouses, five at Elizabeth Twining Almshouses; and ten at Candler Almshouses. At Hickey's there is a chapel dedicated to St Francis of Assisi, the chaplain's house and two lodges for staff. A new set of 12 almshouses, the Elizabeth Doughty Almshouses, will open on Queen's Road, Richmond in May 2025.

Governance

The governing body of the charity is a board of ten

trustee Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, refers to anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility for the ...

s, which meets six times a year. Sub-committees meet to deal with finance, property,

risk management Risk management is the identification, evaluation, and prioritization of risks, followed by the minimization, monitoring, and control of the impact or probability of those risks occurring. Risks can come from various sources (i.e, Threat (sec ...

and safeguarding.

Staff

The Richmond Charities has 14 staff; Emma Halford is the Chief Executive.

References

External links

Official website
{{LB Richmond 1600 establishments in England Almshouses in London Charities based in London Non-profit organisations based in England Organisations based in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames Richmond, London

The almshouses

Governance

Staff

References

Further reading

External links