Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Aberdeenshire Council cutting ties with £1.6m teaching fund ‘directly linked to slave trade’

Isobel Davidson led calls to step back from the Dick Bequest.
Isobel Davidson led calls to step back from the Dick Bequest.

Aberdeenshire Council is severing links with a controversial £1.6 million fund left behind by a slave trader.

James Dick, who died in 1828, made his fortune selling enslaved Africans to Jamaican plantation owners.

For almost two centuries, the cash has gone towards teacher training in Moray and the north-east.

It was only last year that the source of the Dick Bequest was uncovered by historians.

Sculpture celebrating the abolishment of slavery, Big Corn Island, Caribbean Sea, Nicaragua. Photo by Wolfgang Diederich/imageBROKER/Shutterstock

Aberdeenshire Council to ‘decisively distance’ itself from Dick Bequest

Since then, there have been mounting calls for the fund to be disbanded, with the money going to children in Jamaica.

Responding to the calls for the north-east to “decisively distance” itself from the “direct legacy of slavery”, Aberdeenshire councillors yesterday made their first move towards severing the link.

In previous years, during the first meeting of the term, two councillors have been put forward to join the board.

Yesterday, members decided not to nominate anyone.

‘Perhaps it’s time to wind it up…’

Ellon councillor, Isobel Davidson, has been on the board for the past two council terms.

And it was Ms Davidson who led the calls to step away from the Dick Bequest – while seeking assurances the region’s teaching staff wouldn’t suffer.

Isobel Davidson outside the council’s Woodhill House headquarters.

She said: “Most of the money from the slave trade came back to the UK and was spent on buildings or land.

“This is unique because it’s a fund.

“It may seem a little unfair, but I think it has probably come to the end of its time.

“Perhaps it is time to wind it up.”

Education boss ‘discouraged’ applications from teachers

The cash is overseen by 10 governors who meet at least twice a year to assess
grant applications and hand out funds to teachers.

Yesterday’s decision came after council officers explained how the authority has dealt with the situation since the truth emerged.

A report that went before councillors said education boss Laurence Findlay had “discouraged” Aberdeenshire teachers from applying for funding.

How has Dick Bequest helped?

A post on Facebook from Banff Academy, preceding the revelations about the fund, illustrated the good to come from it.

The school announced that faculty head of design and technology, Caroline McFarlane, had been awarded a grant to study for a doctorate in education at Strathclyde University.

‘A shame’ for Aberdeenshire teachers to miss out on training funds

And Ms Davidson is eager that other teachers do not lose out as a result of Aberdeenshire Council walking away from the Dick Bequest.

She said: “I want to seek assurances that the courses staff were able to fund through the Dick Bequest would still be available through the council, in another way.

“It would be a shame for teachers not to have that advantage any more.”

Council chief executive Jim Savege said he would “look to ensure” that cash is made available to teachers seeking additional training.

 

What now after Aberdeenshire Council cuts Dick Bequest ties?

Now that Aberdeenshire Council has voted against appointing its two trustees, that does not necessarily rule out any further local involvement.

Two replacements could be found elsewhere in the area, and Ms Davidson indicated the other governors “didn’t agree” it should be wound up.

It comes after Moray Council agreed last year to lobby the governors to wind up the trust, while keeping one member on the board to fight for change. 

The rest of the group of 10 are put forward by Aberdeen University and a group of lawyers known as the Society of Writers to the Signet.

Historians David Alston and Donald Morrison first exposed how James Dick made his fortune in the Caribbean,

They hope for charity regulators to step in and find a solution for the future use of the money, such as repatriating it to Jamaica.

Conversation