Almshouses Open Doors
For Pat Anne Swan (pictured), her 17 years living in a unit at Berkhamsted’s John Sayer Almshouses have been a ‘lovely’ experience.
Welcoming visitors to her cosy home at an open day at the almshouses in the summer, she recounted moving to Berkhamsted from Stanmore, and immersing herself in the friendly community, soon becoming a familiar face working at The Hospice of St Francis Charity Shop.
The John Sayer Almshouses (JSA) is an independent charity run by trustees. JSA clerk, Hilary Armstrong, said the charity provided housing for the benefit of people in need from the Berkhamsted area, who were capable of independent living.
The almshouses are named after John Sayer, chief cook to Charles II, who lived in Berkhamsted Place. In 1681 Sayer bequeathed £1,000 in trust ‘for the building of an almshouse and the purchasing of lands for the relief of the poor in Berkhamsted St Peter’. His wife Mary dealt with the building of the almshouses as it was in his will.
The original beneficiaries were ‘6 poor widows aged over 55 and constant frequenters of the Church of England’. Each widow was given eight shillings a month and a cloth gown every three years.
The completion of a major refurbishment project started in 2022 has been affected by ongoing damp issues. The final phase, the internal refurbishment of unit 241, costing £85,000, is hoped to be completed next year, subject to raising enough funds.