Following the retirement of Anthony McClaren as Trustee in October 2015, we were delighted to welcome Mr David Owen to our board of Trustees. 

​David was born and brought up in Gloucestershire, studying at Brockworth School, before gaining a degree in Business Studies from Liverpool John Moores University. He spent ten years in the North West working across the education sector and as MD of a start-up, high-growth, training business. For the last fifteen years he has worked in Gloucestershire, first as Director of Enterprise and Innovation at the University of Gloucestershire and now as Chief Executive of GFirst Local Enterprise Partnership (gfirstLEP).  He is currently a director of Gloucestershire Voluntary & Community Sector Alliance, South West Investment Group and Gloucestershire Enterprise Limited and is a member of the International Advisory Group of the Economic Development Council.  He lives in Stroud with his author wife and two daughters.

David attended his first meeting as Trustee in February. This also gave him the opportunity to me our team of Advisers. 
LINK: gfirstLEP website

You’ve seen the headlines, now hear the facts. The contentious method of fracking is surrounded by issues of environmental impact, economic viability and energy security. Get behind the headlines as Guest Director Richard Bacon chairs a frank discussion with Francis Egan, head of the company behind UK fracking, and energy economist Paul Ekins on the politics, the safety and the economics of fracking.

The Summerfield Trust sponsors annual events at the Cheltenham Festivals. For more information see our Projects Funded page.

2014 is the 25th Anniversary of the Summerfield Charitable Trust. To highlight the work of the Trust and explain more about its aims and priorities today and for the future, the Trustees commissioned a video which can be viewed below.

Following a full, indepth review of our grant application procedures in 2012 we are pleased to announce that our new online grant enquiry form is now accessible via the website. The form is designed to be completed and submitted online and forms stage one of the revised two-stage application process. Full details can be found on the How To Apply page.
It is hoped that the revised procedures will help to simplify and speed up the application process for organisations who wish to apply for funding, and also for our Administrator Lavinia Sidgwick. 

It is the policy of the Trust for trustees to retire at the end of a ten year term and in February we bid farewell to both Jamila Gavin and Jan Urban-Smith.  At our April meeting we welcomed two new Trustees - Vanessa Arbuthnott, and Kate Hicks Beach.