In 1926, the Directors of two leading British gunmakers decided to put in place a fund to help support members of the trade and their dependents who found themselves unable to work or in financial hardship. The Gun and Allied Trades Benevolent Society was formed, as a charity, to manage the fund and dispense support to those who needed it. The beneficiaries included gunsmiths who had been injured in the First World War, others who were incapacitated through illness or accident and some who were financially destitute following retirement.

Today, the Society supports a number of beneficiaries, both on a long and short term basis. Some are suffering from acute financial hardship and some from temporary incapacity.

The Committee which manages the Society is entirely made up of volunteers and all other expenses are kept to a minimum, so almost all income is directed to where it is needed. The Society has benefited from generous donations from benefactors in the past, but in these days of historically low interest rates and dividends it has seen the income from its investments significantly reduced, and it depends more than ever on regular donations.