The Athlone Trust (registered charity no. 277065) was formed in 1978 with funds left over following the dissolution of the National Children Adoption Association. The objects of the Trust are to provide financial assistance for needy adopted children and their families who are in necessitous circumstances.

Although in the beginning the funds were used to help adopted children to attend fee paying schools, the tendency over the last few years has been to use the funds to assist parents of adopted children with serious disabilities such as Asperger's Syndrome or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), often as a result of maltreatment or neglect before they were adopted. Indeed the funds are now invariably directed to help pay for children with special educational needs to attend special schools in cases where the fees cannot or will not be paid for by local authorities. In many instances the children have single mothers who have decided to devote their lives to care for families of siblings with disturbed behavioural conditions.

Six years ago the Trustees sadly lost one of their most valued members, Lord Wardington, who died in 2005. He had devoted enormous time and energy to looking after the interests of many applicants as Chairman of the Trust for some ten years until November 2002 when I took over the chairmanship.

The Trust has very limited funds and over the last few years has applied almost all the available income each year towards its charitable objects. In 2007, although the available income, after administration and investment management expenses of £677, was only £6492, the Trustees applied £6783 in grants towards the fees of special schools. In the last three years, as a result of the sponsored British 10k London Run and other donations the Trust's annual income has increased by 75 to 90 per cent. In 2008, it increased by £6000 of which half was invested and the other half was used towards grants which in the year totalled £7086. In 2009 it was increased by £6353 to £13,556 (less expenses £770), enabling grants of £8300 to be paid and in 2010 although the total donations only increased the income by £4888 to £11,211, (less expenses of £638) nevertheless because of the earlier year's income the Trust has been able to support for the academic year 2010 /11 eighteen children with fees for special schools amounting to £11,733.  None of the Trustees receives any remuneration and administration expenses are kept to a minimum. Though a small charity, it nonetheless provides valuable funds, without which seriously disturbed children might not otherwise be able to receive the proper care and specialist teaching needed.

We are badly in need of additional funding which would allow us not only to meet our present commitments out of income, but also to help more needy adopted children than our funds allow at present.  Any support that you might be able to offer would be most gratefully received.

David King-Farlow
Chairman