The history of charity-giving and charity legislation is very long, but also complicated and confusing. In the past uncertainties about charities and their status were legion, and the result was an immense number of charities, quasi-charities and even bogus charities, many of which left records to tantalise and bewilder the local historian.
In this book Norman Alvey provides a summary of the process of charity-giving, and the legislative framework within which it operated, from the early sixteenth century to the present day, tracing the way in which the different motives for charity have been reflected in official attitudes. He emphasises how the vagueness of statute law on the subject meant that much was determined by an endless succession of individual cases.
The important final section brings the story up to date, by showing how the 1992 and 1993 Acts, and their immediate predecessors, helped to clarify some of the key areas. This book provides a clear and ordered introduction to a complex subject, and will be warmly welcomed by all local historians who seek to disentangle the intricacies of charities in their own area of research.
Contents:
General Editor's Information
Author's Introduction
Acknowledgements
1. Charity for Personal Salvation
2. Charity as a Social Responsibility
3. Charity as a Moral Responsibility
4. Charity in the Welfare State
5. What is Charity?
6. Classification of Charitable Purposes
Source Material
References
Bibliography
Index
