A message from the Trustees
The shisham tree, symbol of the NeF.
Lady Viqarunnissa Noon was a unique character who founded this Trust with two main objectives: to give some of the brightest Pakistani students the chance to study at Britain’s best universities and to reinforce links between Britain, the country where she was brought up, and Pakistan, her adopted home.
Vicky Noon, as she was called by her friends, had long recognised, both as wife to one of Pakistan’s most honourable and prominent politicians, and after Firoz Khan Noon’s death, that education was the lifeblood of any country. She believed this was true whatever the economic or political situation; and indeed that the country’s future depended on the young.
Influenced by the integrity and commitment of many of Pakistan’s founding fathers, she quickly realised how important it was to give opportunities to the brightest men and women of Pakistan who might play a leading role in the future. Some of these high achievers rightly aspire to attend the very best universities, such as Oxford and Cambridge. The trustees of the Noon Foundation –drawn from government, academe, public life and media, distinguished in their various ways and all connected with and fond of Pakistan (see biographies) – aim to deliver this vision, utilizing the funds that she so generously left for this purpose.
Competition to get into Oxford and Cambridge is of course fierce. Pakistanis applying for Noon funding must first approach the universities directly and secure admission. If they request Noon funding, their papers will be forwarded by the universities to us at the VNEF. We meet each year in the early summer to assess canditates the criteria set out on the preceding page, including, significantly, a commitment to return to Pakistan and contribute to life in their home country.
Since Lady Vicky Noon founded the trust in 1992, we have been able to fund 
more than 200 deserving young Pakistani scholars to study at the premier universities in the UK. Funds, though, are limited, even more so at times of economic stringency. So, many applicants are inevitably disappointed. But we work in partnership with various other bodies, to ensure that our support stretches as far as possible.
We take pleasure in the candidates’ success, and hope to keep a record of their subsequent progress. Please do keep in touch and help to keep the hopes and ambitions of Vicky alive.
– Dr. Paul Flather, Chairman