In 2017, the committee registered the Benevolent Fund as a charity, and so "The Grips Branch Charity" was born. Founded out of a need to control the ever growing fund and ensure it was being spent in the correct way, the charitable status means that we are regulated and controlled by the Charity Commission.
Members continue to donate in their numbers, all the profits from Dennis Fraser MBE’s book sales (Getting to Grips) going into the fund, means it's growing year on year; and can do more than ever before to help. Over the course of the year the fund hands out chunks of money each month to members suffering from illness or injury, supports retired veterans through organised events and hampers at Christmas and donates to other charities by request of deceased members' families. A massive Thank You goes out to James Sam's who has run the Charity in recent years.