Wellcome Trust

 

The Wellcome Trust is a biomedical explores aid organization based in London, United Kingdom. It was founded in 1936 with inheritance from the pharmaceutical tycoon Sir Henry Wellcome to finance research to develop human and animal health. The objective of the Trust is to "attain extraordinary improvements in health by sustaining the brightest minds", and in addition to funding biomedical research it maintains the public understanding of science. It has an donation of around £18 billion. The Trust has been illustrated by the Financial Times as the United Kingdom's biggest provider of non-governmental financial support for scientific research and one of the biggest providers in the world. In the meadow of medical research, it is the world's second-large private funder after the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. 

History

The Trust was founded to run the wealth of the American-born pharmaceutical tycoon Sir Henry Wellcome. Its income was resultant from what was initially called Burroughs Wellcome, later named in the UK as the Wellcome Foundation Ltd. The trust later sold 25% of Wellcome plc stock to the public in 1986. Managed  by incoming Director of Finance Ian Macgregor, this marked the commencement of a period of financial growth that saw the Trust's value augment by almost £14bn in 14 years, as their interests stimulated beyond the limits of the pharmaceutical industry. In 1995, the trust separated itself from any interest in pharmaceuticals by selling all residual stock to Glaxo plc, the company's historic British contender, creating GlaxoWellcome plc. In 2000, the Wellcome name vanished from the drug business altogether when GlaxoWellcome fused with SmithKline Beecham, forming GlaxoSmithKline plc.

Activites

Biomedical research: The Trust finances the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, a non-profit, British genomics and genetics research institute. Support for Open Access: The Wellcome Trust plays an essential role in encouraging publication of research in open access repositories such as UK PubMed Central (UKPMC). The Wellcome Trust considers that maximizing the circulation of these papers - by providing free, online entrée - is the most helpful way of ensuring that the research can be accessed, read and built upon. In turn, this will promote a richer research culture, Public engagement and the Wellcome Collection.In June 2007, the Wellcome Building revived after restoration as a public venue, accommodaing the Wellcome Collection, the Wellcome Trust Centre for the History of Medicine at University College London and the Wellcome Library. The objective of the Wellcome Collection is to improve public understanding of medical science and history. The building includes gallery spaces, conference facilities, space for debates, drama and workshops, a café and a bookshop. The galleries demonstrate a small sample of works from Sir Henry Wellcome's collected works, and host a programme of events and exhibitions. The Wellcome Collection and exhibitions are open to the public free of charge six days a week. The Wellcome Collection and Wellcome Library are affiliates of The London Museums of Health & Medicine.

Seeding Drug Discovery Initiative

Also known as SDDI, this five year project started in October 2005 with the dispatch "to assist the progress of drug-like small molecules that address unmet medical needs." SDDI was located in London and managed by Richard Davis. Through early 2010, SDDI had offered more than £80 million across 30 projects divided between academic institutions and companies. In May 2010, an extra £110 million was added to the SDDI fund with the aim to extend the project for an additional 5 years. 

Purchase of the Co-operative Farms Business

The Wellcome Trust bought the Co-operative Group's farm business for £249 million in August 2014. This included "15,997 hectares (39,533 acres) of freehold and third party owned land, 15 farms, comprising three pack houses, over 100 residential properties, and 27 commercial properties."