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The History of the Company. |
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The Worshipful Company of Actuaries is one of over 100 Livery Companies established
in the City of London. Some of these Livery Companies, imbued with the rich history
of the City, date from medieval times; others, such as the Actuaries, reflect the
passage of time and the influence and demands of modern life, and have been more
recently established. All, however, seek to maintain and promote the rich traditions
and heritage of the City, as well as promoting the values of the collective Livery
companies and of the individual trades they represent. The Worshipful Company of Actuaries
is number 91 in order of precedence having received its charter in 1979. |
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Many of the Livery companies also encourage standards of excellence in their particular
professions and seek to establish guidelines and regulations. For the actuarial profession
(www.actuaries.org.uk), these responsibilities lie with the
two professional bodies in the UK, the Institute of Actuaries and the Faculty of Actuaries
in Scotland. The Worshipful Company of Actuaries supports them in promoting the profession.
The Company is committed to its profession, aiming to extend recognition and understanding
of the work of actuaries within the City and beyond. |
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The Company also brings the work of the profession to a wider audience, through its
educational and charitable functions. An important objective of the Company is to support
its Charitable Trust, which was established in 1980. The Company is proud to be able
to make donations to charitable causes through the Trust, thus maintaining the Livery
tradition of helping those who are less fortunate. The Trustees, applying the rules of
the Trust and the guidelines laid down, support a number of charities, and not just
those with City or with actuarial connections, but where it is felt that such support
will be of most benefit. |
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Educational establishments also benefit from their association with the Livery Companies.
The benefits are not always necessarily financial, as the sharing of knowledge and expertise,
allied to the networking that such contacts produce is of immense value. The Worshipful
Company of Actuaries has broad links with several universities in the United Kingdom,
awarding bursaries to students following actuarial courses. An annual student lecture
at City University is sponsored by the Company and the Company has presented Awards of
Honour to individuals who have made outstanding contributions in areas relevant to the
actuarial profession. |
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There are strong ties between the Livery Companies and the Corporation of London.
Liverymen are entitled to vote at the elections of the Lord Mayor and Sheriffs and
the Company encourages its members to participate fully in these events as well as
the Annual Guilds Service at St. Pauls Cathedral and the Lord Mayor's Show.
Thus Liverymen have the opportunity to become immersed in the rich pageant and
spectacle that accompanies traditional City of London events. The Company is proud
that one of its members became the first Sheriff of the City to be drawn from one
of the modern Livery Companies and aspires one day to see a Lord Mayor of London,
drawn from its Livery. |
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Company gatherings are convivial and Liverymen and Freemen can, each year, participate
in the Company's Banquet at the Mansion House, as well as other Livery Dinners and
social events which uphold the more social side of our Company and our profession. |
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