Wellcome Trust

Healthcare research charity based in London, United Kingdom

The Wellcome Trust is a biomedical research charity based in London. It was established in 1936. The money came from legacies of the pharmaceutical magnate Sir Henry Wellcome. Its purpose is to fund research to improve human and animal health.

Wellcome Trust
Founded1936; 88 years ago (1936)
FounderSir Henry Wellcome
Registration no.210183
FocusBiomedical Research
HeadquartersLondon, NW1
United Kingdom
Location
Coordinates51°31′32.55″N 0°8′6.07″W / 51.5257083°N 0.1350194°W / 51.5257083; -0.1350194
Area served
United Kingdom and overseas
Key people
Baroness Eliza Manningham-Buller[1]
(Chair)
Dr Jeremy Farrar[2]
(Director)
Disbursements£11 billion (1936-2015)[3]
Endowment£25.9 billion[4]
Employees
2,057[5]
Websitewww.wellcome.org

The Trust aims to "achieve extraordinary improvements in health by supporting the brightest minds". In addition to funding biomedical research, it supports the public understanding of science. It has an endowment of £23.2 billion (2017) making it the second wealthiest charitable foundation in the world (the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is the richest).[4][6]

The Trust has been described by the Financial Times as the United Kingdom's largest provider of non-governmental funding for scientific research. It is one of the largest providers in the world.[7]

References change

  1. "Eliza Manningham-Buller to be next Chair of the Wellcome Trust". Archived from the original on 22 May 2016. Retrieved 9 March 2018.
  2. Van Noorden, Richard (2013). "Clinician to head Wellcome Trust: Jeremy Farrar to lead one of world's largest research charities". Nature. 497 (7447): 19. Bibcode:2013Natur.497...19V. doi:10.1038/497019a. PMID 23636375. S2CID 4410184.
  3. "Wellcome Trust aims to increase spend to £5 billion over next 5 years". Archived from the original on 14 May 2016. Retrieved 9 March 2018.
  4. 4.0 4.1 "Value of Wellcome's investments passes £25 billion". Wellcome Trust. 2018.
  5. "Charity Commission factsheet for the Wellcome Trust". Charity Commission for England and Wales. 17 December 2015.
  6. Alok Jha (9 April 2012), "Wellcome Trust joins 'academic spring' to open up science", The Guardian
  7. Andrew Jack (10 April 2012). "Wellcome challenges science journals". Financial Times. Retrieved 16 April 2012.