It is clear to us now, that while firmly committed to combating racism, we failed to consider whether our own 300-year-old name and history compounded the problem. We have also continued to celebrate Sir John Cass without explaining or acknowledging his connection to slavery and human exploitation, or the hurt and anger this has caused amongst our beneficiaries and our community. We recognise, acknowledge, seek to understand, and apologise, for the public hurt and anger.

We want our beneficiaries to be proud to benefit from the opportunities that our grants provide. So let us be clear: we no longer consider the Sir John Cass name appropriate to represent us and the work that we do in this century or in the future. We commit to a change of name.

It is important to us that our new name reflects our beliefs and charitable work, and will remain relevant through the next 300 years. We therefore ask for your patience in the coming weeks while Trustees, partners, and stakeholders, consult on the name and then undertake the legal applications to officially change our name as a charity.

Above all, we remain dedicated to educational projects to challenge and eradicate racism, discrimination and inequality. We welcome these major steps we are taking to evolve while we continue to serve our beneficiaries, changing their lives for the better and enabling them to benefit from the excellent projects and schemes our partners provide.