Albany Trust
Encyclopedia
The Albany Trust was founded in the United Kingdom
as a registered charity in May 1958 to complement the Homosexual Law Reform Society
(HLRS). It takes its name from The Albany
, in Piccadilly
, London
, where J.B. Priestley and his wife Jacquetta Hawkes
had an apartment, and at which the trust's earliest meetings were held.
The goal of the Trust is to "promote psychological health in men by collecting data and conducting research: to publish the results thereof by writing, films, lectures and other media: to take suitable steps based thereon for the public benefit to improve the social and general conditions necessary for such healthy psychological development."
The founding Trustees were A.E. Dyson, Jacquetta Hawkes, Kenneth Walker
, Andrew Hallidie Smith, and Ambrose Appelbe.
The Albany Trust developed into a pioneering counselling organisation for gay men, lesbians and sexual minorities.
The funds raised and donated for the work of the Albany Trust allowed it to open offices in October 1958. These facilities, at 32 Shaftesbury Avenue
, were then also available for the campaigning work of the HLRS. The longtime "public face" of these activities was Antony Grey
, from 1962 Secretary of both the Albany Trust and the HLRS (the latter later being renamed the Sexual Law Reform Society).
After the Sexual Offences Act 1967
partially decriminalised homosexual relationships between adult men, the Albany Trust became an educational and counselling organisation. From 1967 the Trust was also involved the development of sex education. For example, this included support and advice for the Dorian Society
of New Zealand
.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
as a registered charity in May 1958 to complement the Homosexual Law Reform Society
Homosexual Law Reform Society
The Homosexual Law Reform Society was an organisation that campaigned in the United Kingdom for changes in the laws that criminalised homosexual relations between men.- History :...
(HLRS). It takes its name from The Albany
The Albany
The Albany or Albany is an apartment complex in Piccadilly, London.-Building:...
, in Piccadilly
Piccadilly
Piccadilly is a major street in central London, running from Hyde Park Corner in the west to Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is completely within the city of Westminster. The street is part of the A4 road, London's second most important western artery. St...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, where J.B. Priestley and his wife Jacquetta Hawkes
Jacquetta Hawkes
Jacquetta Hawkes was a British archaeologist.Born Jessie Jacquetta Hopkins, the daughter of Nobel Prize-winning scientist, Sir Frederick Gowland Hopkins, she married first Christopher Hawkes, then an Assistant Keeper at the British Museum, in 1933. From 1953, she was married to J. B. Priestley...
had an apartment, and at which the trust's earliest meetings were held.
The goal of the Trust is to "promote psychological health in men by collecting data and conducting research: to publish the results thereof by writing, films, lectures and other media: to take suitable steps based thereon for the public benefit to improve the social and general conditions necessary for such healthy psychological development."
The founding Trustees were A.E. Dyson, Jacquetta Hawkes, Kenneth Walker
Kenneth Walker (author)
Kenneth Macfarlane Walker was a British author and urologist . Among many other books he wrote The Log of the Ark with Geoffrey Boumphrey in 1923, Life's Long Journey and A Study of Gurdjieff's Teaching....
, Andrew Hallidie Smith, and Ambrose Appelbe.
The Albany Trust developed into a pioneering counselling organisation for gay men, lesbians and sexual minorities.
The funds raised and donated for the work of the Albany Trust allowed it to open offices in October 1958. These facilities, at 32 Shaftesbury Avenue
Shaftesbury Avenue
Shaftesbury Avenue is a major street in central London, England, named after Anthony Ashley Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury, that runs in a north-easterly direction from Piccadilly Circus to New Oxford Street, crossing Charing Cross Road at Cambridge Circus....
, were then also available for the campaigning work of the HLRS. The longtime "public face" of these activities was Antony Grey
Antony Grey
Antony Grey was a leading English lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender rights activist. He lived with his partner, Eric Thompson, for 50 years after first meeting in 1960...
, from 1962 Secretary of both the Albany Trust and the HLRS (the latter later being renamed the Sexual Law Reform Society).
After the Sexual Offences Act 1967
Sexual Offences Act 1967
The Sexual Offences Act 1967 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom . It decriminalised homosexual acts in private between two men, both of whom had to have attained the age of 21. The Act applied only to England and Wales and did not cover the Merchant Navy or the Armed Forces...
partially decriminalised homosexual relationships between adult men, the Albany Trust became an educational and counselling organisation. From 1967 the Trust was also involved the development of sex education. For example, this included support and advice for the Dorian Society
Dorian Society
The Dorian Society was the first New Zealand organisation for homosexual men. It was primarily a social club and avoided political action. In 1963 it took the first steps towards law reform by forming a legal subcommittee that collected books and other resources. It also provided legal advice to...
of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
.
Further reading
- Antony Grey, Quest for justice: Towards homosexual emancipation, London, 1992. ISBN 1-85619-136-2
- Jeffrey WeeksJeffrey Weeks (sociologist)Jeffrey Weeks is a historian and sociologist specialising in work on sexuality, and is also a gay activist.-Career:...
, Coming out: Homosexual politics in Britain, from the nineteenth century to the present, London, 1977. ISBN 0-7043-2146-7
External links
- Catalogue of the Albany Trust papers at the Archives Division of the London School of EconomicsLondon School of EconomicsThe London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
.