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CROSS TRUST
History The Cross Trust is named after its founder, Sir Alexander Cross and was established in 1943 in the middle of World War II. This in itself indicates that Sir Alexander Cross was an enterprising character who was looking ahead to the needs and aspirations of Scottish Youth when the war ended. Sir Alexander Cross: 1880 - 1963 Sir Alexander was the grandson of William Cross, the senior partner of Alexander Cross & Sons of Glasgow who were seed merchants and chemical manufacturers. He was educated at Charterhouse and then at Balliol College, Oxford. His career as a barrister was interrupted by the Great War of 1914 - 1918 during which he served as a Captain with The Glasgow Yeomanry in Palestine. Although Sir Alexander survived the war, he suffered injuries and his hearing was severely impaired. This meant that he could not continue his career and never worked as a barrister again. When he returned to Scotland in 1925, he first rented and then bought a house in Perthshire. He chose a property at Battleby because it would allow him to develop his interest in plants and trees and cultivate a show-piece garden. Sir Alexander lived there as a bachelor until his death aged 83 on 12th May 1963. Sir Alexander developed the belief that a provision of funds at the appropriate time in a young person’s life could turn someone who may be described as “an awkward youth” into a successful member of society. Both boys and girls have benefited from grants since the inception of the Trust. Although he did make donations to benefit individual schoolchildren, high taxation (surtax was 90% at one time) coupled with financial advice made Sir Alexander realise that there were significant benefits in establishing a Charitable Trust. Accordingly The Cross Trust was established in 1943. The main aim of the Trust was (and remains) “to enable young people of Scottish Birth or Parentage to extend the boundaries of their knowledge of human life”. Sir Alexander was interested not only in helping people escape material poverty, but also in achieving spiritual and personal fulfilment. Accordingly the early focus concentrated on helping people in education, the arts and to travel abroad. Sir Alexander’s philosophy was that once a person had become a Cross Trust beneficiary this designation remained with them for the rest of their lives and he often took an interest in and kept in contact with beneficiaries long after grant awards had been made. The Growth of The Cross Trust When it was established in 1943 the Trust funds comprised an annuity of £1,000 but in 1946 and also in later years Sir Alexander injected substantial sums so that the Trust is now in a position to help many applicants each year. Sir Alexander’s love for the Arts also benefited Perth Theatre and he offered practical assistance to enable the Theatre to become a Charity in its own right. The Cross Trust became a long standing supporter of Perth Theatre, as well as the Byre in St Andrews and The Gateway in Edinburgh. Individual musicians, language students (many who required to live abroad) and scientists have all benefited from Sir Alexander’s generosity. (One famous beneficiary is Annette Crosbie who received grants to attend Bristol Old Vic Theatre School.) Changes and a new Chairman Sir Alexander had been creator of and guiding light for The Cross Trust since its inception but with his death in 1963 a new Chairman had to be found. Sir Alick Buchanan Smith (later Lord Balerno) became Chairman and carried on the work of Sir Alexander. With the passage of years, changes in government policy with regard to funding of universities and increased pressure on available funding, the Trustees developed policies and guidelines to assist them in their decision making. The Trustees have developed the Trust’s work in an evolving society, whilst adhering to the objectives of the Trust and in the spirit of its founder. Although` the principal emphasis of the Trust is to benefit individual applicants, organisations which fulfilled the Trust’s aims continued to benefit over the years (eg one of the awards made to mark the 50th Anniversary of the Trust was to the Scottish Youth Hostel Association (an organisation which the Trust has regularly supported).
Sir Alexander wished to allow young people from Scotland the freedom to achieve their potential as students and as adults in the modern world. This remains the Trust’s aim today.
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