Wye Almshouse Charity

Located at the top of a grass bank, next to the Lady Joanna Thornhill Primary School, the Kempe Almshouses provide housing for elderly residents of Wye. The original structure was probably a hay barn and Sir Thomas Kempe (1517-1591) of Olantigh provided funds in 1562 for the continued use of the building as an almshouse and maintained it 'only upon his charity zeal'.

Subsequently, some three hundred years ago, Lady Joanna Thornhill bequeathed land to the trustees to ensure financial security necessary and enable them to provide for the care of six poor residents. Rent from this endowment continues to provide the charity with a regular income today.

In 1986, the trustees reviewed the accommodation, which by then was becoming difficult to let. With the help of loans from The Housing Corporation the old building was re-roofed and re-built with separate living rooms, bedrooms and improved bathrooms and kitchens. To accommodate all the changes the six dwellings were reduced to five on two floors. All properties were built to modern standards of heating and insulation to ensure the comfort of the residents. At the same time the trustees added three new, two person, one-bedroom almshouses in the large rear garden of the site in a complementary design.

Wye with Hinxhill Parish Council appoints three of the trustees to this charity and receives reports from the Trustees at public meetings. The Wye Almshouse Charity is registered under charity number 210070.

Extract from the charitable objects stated in the scheme of 1989'...the almspeople shall be poor persons of good character who (except in special cases to be approved by the commissioners) are resident in the parish of Wye or the neighbourhood thereof at the time of appointment with a preference for such persons who are not less than 60 years of age.'

Extract from the governing document: The area of benefit is 'the parish of Wye or the neighbourhood thereof.' Wye is fortunate to have the only almshouses in the whole borough of Ashford.

There are no vacancies. Please contact the Clerk to the Trustees at the address below to register an interest.

Click on the green bar above for the accepted definition of an almshouse, and find out how they differ from other types of housing.