The Prince & Princess of Wales Hospice | A gift in your will | The Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice

Writing your Will

Whether you decide to use the free Wills service or not, it is recommended you consult a qualified solicitor or member of the Institute of Professional Will-writers when making your Will. As Wills are legal documents, it's important to get the wording correct, so that any gifts you leave can be given to the right people without delay.

Before you meet with your solicitor or Will-writer, it's a good idea to do the following:

Think about everything you own and decide on what gifts you want to leave, and to whom.
Choose your executor. This can be a friend or family member you trust to carry out your wishes, but you could also choose a professional such as your solicitor or an accountant, if they are happy to be your executor.

You don’t need to use a solicitor, you can actually write your own Will. However, we always advise people to use a professional will writing service because mistakes in your will can cause stress and expense for your family and beneficiaries.

For most people a simple Will produced by a good Will writing service is more than sufficient for their needs. But for others advice from a solicitor is beneficial especially where they have assets in excess of their Inheritance Tax threshold (see 'Gifts in wills and tax' answer below), they have a large or complex family, or they wish to create some form of trust arrangements.

Types of Gifts in a Will

Residuary

A residuary gift is a share of your estate – a percentage of what is left after any taxes or costs have been subtracted. Residuary gifts account for 50% of the income we receive from gifts in wills. Whilst occasionally someone leaves us their whole estate, many people choose to leave a small percentage and on average we receive around a quarter of their estate. Whatever you are able to give to the hospice will make an incredible difference to people affected by cancer.

Pecuniary

A pecuniary gift is a fixed amount of money.

Specific

These are particular items, such as a house, stocks and shares or jewellery. Anything that's of financial value to you. Usually, the hospice will sell items like this in order to raise much needed funds.

All types of gifts are all greatly welcomed and appreciated.

When should I write a Will?

It is beneficial to complete a will even if you feel there is no urgency for it. It means that you can relax knowing your wishes will be carried out.

Reasons to consider updating your Will

Once your will is written it's a good idea to review it every five years or so and after any major life changes, such as:

marriage or divorce
birth of a child or grandchild
moving house
your executor is no longer suitable
the value of your estate has changed.

Where should I keep my Will?

This is entirely up to you. The document should be kept in a safe place and you should make your executors aware of where it is kept. You should always have a copy of your Will, even if a solicitor stores it for you.

Did you know that over two thirds of our funding comes from voluntary donations, including gifts in Wills? Without these donations, we wouldn’t be able to provide care at home, at our in-patient unit, or our bereavement or day services

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How a gift in your will helps

Get in touch

Our legacy fundraiser, Michelle Pagett, is always happy to chat if you have any questions. You can contact her on 0141 429 9835 or email fundraising@ppwh.org.uk