The Merchant Taylors are a Grant Giving Charity

We support the Young People of York - these are the winners of the York College MT merit award 2024

We use the income we receive from letting the Hall, endowment funds and Member donations to maintain and preserve the Hall and to support the development of skill and talent of York based young people in the areas of arts, music and crafts.  At present we distribute grants totalling approximately £15,000 each year. We have ambition to grow this and welcome your donation to help us do this.

Young woman standing next to a mannequin dressed in a shiny satin button-up shirt, black pants, and a decorative gray top with ruffled details.
Two women standing in front of a York Consortium for Conservation and Craftsmanship banner, smiling at the camera, wearing name tags. The woman on the left has short blue hair and is wearing a cream shirt with a red cardigan, while the woman on the right has black hair and is wearing a beige knitted sweater over a striped shirt.
Three people taking a selfie outdoors, two women and one man, all wearing lanyards with red straps. The woman in the front has dyed green hair, glasses, and is smiling with her tongue slightly out. The man on the left has a beard, glasses, and is wearing a gray shirt. The woman on the right has short purple hair and is also smiling.
Three women are gathered in a room, looking at a smartphone and open notebooks. The woman in the middle has a name tag and a medal around her neck. They appear to be engaged in a discussion or sharing information.

We work with partners such as the York Consortium for Conservation and Craftsmanship, York College and York Music Hub who benefit from our funds in order to further their aims and ours.

Two women standing in front of a building with a sign that reads 'The Company of Merchant Taylors.' One woman is wearing a colorful plaid dress, black shoes, and a small black designer handbag with a gold YSL logo. The other woman is wearing a dark brown blouse, a long black skirt, and a brown purse. They are smiling and standing close together.

 The charitable giving objectives of the Company are fixed by the 1945 Trust Deed and are formally put “such other purposes for the benefit of the poor and deserving persons of the city and suburbs as are charitable”. We follow a 2001 decision to focus our Charitable Activity Fund on giving assistance to young persons in the areas of arts, music and crafts.  We target our work based on the following criteria: 

  • Age - those who are under 30. 

  • Place - those living in York or with a “connection to York”.

  • Need - those on a low income and, if a child, living in a low-income family.  Receipt of means-tested benefits is a guide to low income.

  • Arts & crafts - including craft and artisanal skills, such as tailoring, fashion, music and the creative arts.