The Charities’ Property Association was established in the late 1970s as the Association of Landowning Charities. Its purpose was to bring together charities that own land and properties either as their main charitable purpose (such as charitable estates and providers of social housing) or as a necessary part of pursuing their main charitable purpose (such as universities and colleges). The first Secretary of the Association was Harry Kidd, previously Bursar and Fellow of St John’s College, Oxford, and when he decided to retire in 1990, Helen Donoghue was recruited to succeed him.
The Association of Landowning Charities subsequently became the Charities’ Property Association as it was felt that this name better reflected the portfolios of the members.