Background:
The Golden Charter Trust was established in 1990 with the fundamental purpose to ingather, hold, and invest the cash paid by plan holders who purchased funeral plans from Golden Charter Limited. The Trust is independent of Golden Charter Limited and its assets are held separately from the assets of Golden Charter Limited. The Trust is governed by a Trust Deed which was revised to meet the requirements of the Financial Conduct Authority regulation of the pre-paid funeral plan sector effective from 29 July 2022.
The Trust exists for the protection of both the plan holders who have purchased funeral plans from Golden Charter Limited, and for the funeral directors who have undertaken to carry out the funeral services in accordance with the terms and conditions of the funeral plans.
The Trust’s investments are held in a company, The Golden Charter Trust Limited, which is wholly owned by the Trust. Holding its investments in a company allows the Trust to conduct its investment business more efficiently. The Trustees of The Golden Charter Trust are appointed as the directors of The Golden Charter Trust Limited. The statutory accounts of The Golden Charter Trust Limited are filed on public record at Companies House and are available to view on our website.
The investment objective of the Trust is to invest the funds received with a view to ensuring that at all times, there are sufficient funds to meet the anticipated invoice costs of all outstanding and matured funeral plans.
How the Trust is managed:
The Trust’s executive team is responsible for managing the financial, legal and administrative affairs of the Trust and reports to the Board of Trustees which is responsible for all executive decisions.
The Board of Trustees comprises experienced individuals from a wide range of business backgrounds. The Board is required, by majority, to be independent of Golden Charter Limited. The Trust has seven serving trustees of which six are independent and one is nominated by the SAIFCharter Executive. Certain matters are assigned to the following committees for specific focus and to make recommendations to the Board of Trustees.
The Investment Strategy Group members all have significant investment experience. In performing their strategic investment function, the Investment Strategy Group take advice from the Trust’s investment advisers, Barnett Waddingham LLP, and from the various appointed investment managers who perform the investment management within their agreed mandate.
The Audit and Risk Committee meets to consider risk, governance and compliance issues. In addition, the Audit and Risk Committee oversees the production and audit of the annual financial statements of the Trust and The Golden Charter Trust Limited.
The Nominations and Remuneration Committee’s responsibilities include ensuring that the performance of the Board of Trustees and of individual Trustees is regularly reviewed. It is also responsible for the process of identifying new trustees and for making recommendations on the level of Trustees’ remuneration.
The Joint Liaison Committee comprises a mix of Trustees and Directors of Golden Charter Limited. The Committee meets to agree a coherent joint response to strategic issues. It also provides a forum for sharing of ideas and to gain a mutual understanding of key issues and the evolving relationship between the Trust and Golden Charter Limited.
Expenses of the Trust:
The Trust’s operating expenses include fees paid to the Trust’s investment managers and professional advisers, and the remuneration of the Trustees and the Trust’s employees. An annual fee is paid by the Trust to Golden Charter Limited for the provision of accounting and other administrative services provided to the Trust under a Service Level Agreement between the two entities.
Receipt and investment of plan monies:
All monies received from Golden Charter Limited from the sale of funeral plans are invested in accordance with the Trust’s investment strategy.
1. Customers purchase funeral plans from Golden Charter, the services of which are subcontracted to the chosen or allocated funeral directors.
2. Golden Charter deducts the fees set out in the T&Cs of its funeral plans and pays the balance of the plan monies into the Trust.
3. The Trust invests the net funds received with carefully selected investment managers through its subsidiary..
4. Funeral directors perform the funeral services, as specified in the funeral plans, at the time of need.
5. The Trust pays the invoice amounts for matured plans, as advised by Golden Charter Limited, to funeral directors.