Welcome to St George the Martyr Charity
We are a small, endowed charity based in the north of the London borough of Southwark. The Charity was originally founded in 1584 through the will of one Stephen Skydmore, who left money to the church of St George the Martyr in Borough High Street to help "the poor of the parish". Other rich merchants added to the funds over the following 400 years and we are entirely funded by income from this endowment.
The Charity is now independent of the church and we provide support to people of all faiths and none.
The Charity’s funds may be used to relieve ‘hardship, need and distress’ amongst the residents of our Area of Benefit, which was extended to the boundaries of the former (pre-1965) Metropolitan Borough of Southwark in 1975 (see Area of Benefit map below).
Currently we mainly provide support to older people, through the provision of social opportunities, homecare services, pastoral support and limited financial assistance. We also provide grants to a wider population of residents who are in ’hardship, need or distress’. We accept direct approaches from individuals and referrals from a wide range of public and voluntary sector organisations.
We sometimes provide grants to other charities that support people who live in our area of benefit and are in ‘hardship, need and distress’.
We also administer the Surrey Dispensary fund, on behalf of the trustees of that charity. Please click on the ‘Surrey Dispensary’ tab for more information.
PLEASE NOTE THAT NONE OF OUR STAFF WORK ON FRIDAYS
Area of Benefit
We help people who lived within - or very near - the boundaries of the former (pre-1965) Metropolitan Borough of Southwark
