The stated purpose of the Land Trust is to
- “give financial assistance to the poor and needy
residing specifically within the ancient parish of Cantley with Branton…”
It is for the trustees to agree who constitutes a deserving case; they do this by considering the information on a claimant’s personal circumstances from the completed application form, and then by making one or more visits to the claimant.
The “financial assistance” usually takes the form of the provision of:
- Essential household items, such as furniture, bedding, carpeting and curtaining
- Equipment such as fridges, freezers, cookers and washing machines.
The trustees may make exceptions to this, at their discretion: our rationale is simply to help people overcome current extreme difficulties.
The boundaries of our ‘assistance area’ have become less easy to identify over the years, as new housing developments have been built and crossed the old borders between the different parishes; loosely speaking, we help those in need throughout much of Cantley, Branton and some of Bessacarr. On application, our clerk will confirm if you live within the relevant region.
We make payment for all goods direct to the supplier and arrange for delivery direct to the claimant where necessary.
If carpeting is requested (and the application is successful) we will arrange for our carpeting supplier and fitter to call and agree the precise quality and colours of carpet to be supplied, subject to a maximum amount we will have specified. This will then be supplied as soon as possible.
Gas or electrical items are always supplied and fully fitted and tested by our qualified suppliers.
We may use our contacts and repurposing charities to obtain quality second-hand furniture such as sofas, beds or tables. In these instances a claimant may be invited to visit the establishment and make a choice of furniture to the agreed value and arrange delivery direct with the supplier. Again, we make payment for the goods and delivery direct to the supplier.
In a small number of cases we may consider decorating requirements; we either arrange for the work to be done or, where the work may be small, to provide equipment and tools.
We are not able to advise clients in any way, nor to offer any financial recommendation. On our ‘Links’ page you will find a list of many organisations – voluntary, charitable, state- or council-organised – which do offer additional help and advice, and we would suggest that clients approach one or two of these organisations for additional help, information or advice.