Queen Elizabeth II Commonwealth Trust

The Queen's Commonwealth Trust, also known as QCT, was launched on 21 April 2018 (the Queen's 92nd birthday) with her patronage and her grandson Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex as president.^[4] After marriage, Harry's wife Meghan was appointed vice president later that year. The couple retained their positions until February 2021.^[5] In May 2024, King Charles III became the charity's patron.^[6]

The QCT seeks to elevate the work of young people in their efforts for change and to equalise their efforts with professional organisations.^[7] The Trust operates as a network for young changemakers throughout the Commonwealth, to fund, connect, and platform discussions and projects on a local level.^[8] Periodically, online QCT chat sessions are conducted and uploaded to YouTube for public viewing.^[9]

In March 2019, The Queen's Trust gave QCT its final funds of £2,672,287 from a planned run-down.^[10]

In 2021, model Naomi Campbell became a global ambassador for QCT.^[11]

In the financial year 2020/2021, QCT paid nearly all of its income on staff costs, £787,314 of the £796,106 it raised. The staff costs of its five senior executives was £420,000. The charity put this down the difficulties of raising donations during the COVID-19 pandemic.^[11] The charity operated at a large deficit during the 2019/2020 and 2020/2021 financial years.^[12]

QECT finds and funds youths who are making a difference in their local communities. Projects and organisations supported by the Trust revolve around the issues of poverty, climate change, lack of access to healthcare, education and unemployment.