The Dr Bruce Fund has been widely used in Musselburgh throughout its long history.
A 200-year-old charity run by a Scottish local authority is facing scrutiny from auditors over a “lack of activity”.
The Dr Bruce Fund, overseen by East Lothian Council, was set up to help the poor in Musselburgh in the area, with local councillors appointed as trustees.
However, a new report by by Audit Scotland says that it is still not operating the way it should.
The auditors have previously warned the council for failing to promote the charity effectively.
Audit Scotland will now look into the progress of a review which the council first said it would carry out into all of the trusts in its care five years ago.
The charity is reported to have £20,000 in the bank but has given out very limited amounts in recent years.
The East Lothian Courier has said between 2016 and 2021 it made only small awards to the same two individuals each year, amounting to £50, rising to £70 by last year - when both cheques were not cashed.
East Lothian Council’s audit and governance committee will this week consider a report which says that focus will again be on the fund and the wider review.
It reads: “The previously reported lack of charitable activity by the Dr Bruce Fund continues into 2022/23.
“There is a risk that the charity is not fulfilling its charitable objectives and that the trustees are not properly discharging their responsibilities.”
The fund was established by Charles Key Bruce, who studied in Musselburgh before making his fortune in East India.
When he died, he bequeathed £2,000 to a permanent fund from which the interest was to be used to give poor relief to people in the town.
Historically the fund has been widely used in the town, and was mentioned during 19th-century hearings into the Poor Law in Scotland.
Easy Lothian Council previously announced plans in 2018 to review all 46 trusts it oversaw, with estimated assets of over £3.5m.
To date no actions have been made public, but last year the council said that it had appointed a staff member to progress the review and anticipated recommendations being brought forward this year in response to Audit Scotland’s call for action.
The financial body says that it will include the review in this year’s audit, saying: “We will review progress of the planned review of trusts (covering Dr Bruce and other trusts which are not registered charities), which was set out as an improvement action in the 2021/22 annual audit report action plan.”
