In 1898 the Northern Police Orphanage was opened at Harrogate, North Yorkshire. The property – St Georges House – was purchased by Miss Catherine Gurney in 1897.

At first, a section of the house was devoted to police officers requiring convalescence, until the opening of the Northern Police Convalescent Home in 1903.

St Georges consisted of a large house and nearly twelve acres of land on Otley Road in Harrogate. Initially a sanatorium and gymnasium were added to the building but it was some 14 years later when more comprehensive building work began. In 1928 a wing for boys was built between the main building and the gymnasium while in 1930 a wing for the girls, the “Gurney Wing” was added to the back of the house, overlooking Harlow Moor Road.

The orphanage was maintained by voluntary contributions of police forces in the northern area of England and Wales.

During 1951 the future of St Georges was examined by an ‘Exploration Committee’ and in 1953 it was finally decided by the General Council, guided by the referendum by questionnaire to all members of the police forces, to run a smaller home than St George’s. A suitable house was found in Hereford Road in Harrogate and a small number of young people lived there until the home closed in 1956.

The proceeds from the sale of St Georges House and the property in Hereford Road were used to set up firstly the Georges Fund in 1955, and the Northern Police Orphans Trust in 1964. These enabled payments to children who because of a change in the social climate could be cared for at home by their remaining parent. The St Georges Fund made quarterly grants to families with children in full time education (Scotland, northern England and North Wales). The Northern Police Orphans Trust paid school leavers grants to children who completed further education and also supported families who had adult children with special needs who were unable to earn their own living (northern England and North Wales). In addition grants to assist with costs involved in university education were introduced.

Creation of the St Georges Police Trust
At a meeting of the Board of Trustees in 2005, the suggestion to merge the St Georges Fund and the Northern Police Orphans Trust was debated.

The two Charities had almost identical aims: providing financial support to the children of deceased officers. The funds in the Northern Police Orphans Trust were under-used and it was thought that more benefit could be gained by amalgamating the charities. A merger would lead to a wider beneficiary base, to include Scottish forces more fully in the benefits available and considerable savings in terms of administration cost enabling funds to be used more effectively and efficiently.

At the Annual General Meeting of the Northern Police Charities in June 2005, a vote was taken and agreement was reached to proceed with the merger. The process, which involved periods of public consultation, concluded in May 2006 when the scheme (rules) for the new St Georges Police Trust was sealed.