Our founder William Whiteley was a successful retail entrepreneur who, on his death, bequeathed £1 million to create housing for ‘the needy poor in their old age’. A visionary in his time, we believe William Whiteley’s philosophy is just as important now as it was then.

One in three babies born in the UK today will live to be 100 (ONS 2016). As more of us live longer and housing becomes increasingly unaffordable to many, poverty and homelessness in older age is increasing, impacting on health and quality of life. This makes our mission to offer a home to older people who might otherwise be homeless, so crucial.

With over 260 listed buildings on site, Whiteley Village is expensive to look after, especially for a charity of our size. Our longer-term viability is therefore underpinned by being as entrepreneurial and dedicated as our founder.

We are committed to increasing our provision for older people on low income, and the Trust is always exploring new options for developing our 225-acre estate, of which currently less than 4% has been built on.