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International Giving@UCT: Focus on the United Kingdom

The University of Cape Town Trust is a UK registered charity which was established in 1990 and raises funds for projects at UCT from Foundations, Alumni and other individuals. Over the years, UK donors to UCT have supported a host of projects that have especially included the Schools Improvement Initiative and the Opera School. The drive to invest in transformation is also a key focus of fundraising efforts in the UK and this is facilitated through the UK Alumni Bursary Fund. In 2015 the fund assisted a total of twelve talented students in need of financial support, five undergraduates and seven postgraduates. There are approximately thirty UK based alumni who support student bursaries at UCT, all of whom have pledged to assist in opening further opportunities for transformation and redress.

Chantry Westwell (née Holborn) graduated from UCT with a BA in 1981 and now works with medieval manuscripts at the British Library: “I feel strongly that it is our responsibility to give back… It is crucial to the future success of a country to which I am indebted and which holds many happy memories for me. This is why I and my husband Stephen are regular donors to the UK Alumni Bursary Fund.”

Dr Megan Jobson, BEng(Chem), graduated in 1989 and is now a senior academic at the University of Manchester: “I am very proud of UCT and its excellent academic reputation. I am deeply grateful for the education I obtained… and therefore wish to help create opportunities for others, so that they can realise their potential through a UCT education.”

Kenneth Jones, BCom 1963/BCom Econ (Hons) 1964: “I support the UK Alumni Bursary Fund because it helps students from disadvantaged backgrounds who have overcome so many obstacles to reach UCT.”

Thomas Withington, BBusSci, 2005, and Joanne Withington, MBChB, 2007: “Living in London but still feeling very much South African, we appreciate any opportunity to contribute to causes back home. Furthermore, we are aware of how much UCT shaped us and what an excellent platform it offered us for our careers, so we are grateful to assist others who may not have the financial means to study there.”

UCT Chancellor Graça Machel, flanked by Stephen and Chantry Westwell