The Manly Trust, formerly known as the A.G. Manly Charitable Trust, was founded by Graham Manly in 1991 in memory of his father Alfred Manly. With both father and son having successful careers in Building Services Engineering, Graham was passionate about supporting & nurturing the next generation of engineers through education, training, and careers development. Initially with a modest investment, the Trust was established to provide funding to charities and academic institutions who shared Graham’s mission to develop future engineering capability.
The growth of the Trust over the past 35 years has enabled the expansion of its reach and impact, and to date over £2.5 million has been donated.
Two generations of engineering excellence
Alfred Manly founded the eponymous A.G. Manly & Co, based in Wandsworth, South West London, in 1948. Over the subsequent decades it grew to become one of the largest independent building services engineering businesses in the UK.
In 1972, Alfred’s son, Graham, joined A.G. Manly & Co as Mechanical Services Contractor before becoming Contracts Director in 1977, and Managing Director in 1982. A.G. Manly & Co. was acquired by Gratte Brothers in 2000 and Graham became Business Development Director, with special responsibility for technical innovation.
Both father and son served as Presidents of the Heating & Ventilating Contractors Association (now BESA) in 1978 and 2009 respectively. Graham was also President of CIBSE in 2004 and was awarded an OBE for his contribution to Building Services Engineering in 2012. Graham received an honorary doctorate from London South Bank University, where he was a visiting professor, just 6 months before his death in 2019.
Current Trustees
From its inception in 1991 until 2023, The Manly Trust was run by Graham’s wife, Margaret, as chair of a Board of Trustees, that included friends, family and close connections made through Graham’s career. The family association remains through their son, David, who has been a Trustee since 2013. The current Board of Trustees comprises (pictured left to right, alongside CIBSE CEO Ruth Carter & President Vince Arnold):
- Ewen Rose, Director at McGowan Rose Associates
- David Manly, Brand Consultant
- David Montgomery, Retired Chartered Accountant
- Simon Carpenter, Commercial Director at eleXion