How to leave a gift in your will

Leaving a gift in your will is a lasting way of saying thank you for the care and treatment you or a loved one have received, or simply because you want to make a difference to patients, their families and hospital staff in the future.

Your gift will support UHBW and the ten hospitals in Bristol city centre, South Bristol and Weston-super-Mare.

Whether you already have a will or are writing one for the first time, leaving a gift to Bristol & Weston Hospitals Charity is easy to arrange. Below is some information to help you through the process, or, alternatively, you can download our Legacy Fact Sheet.

Download Legacy Fact Sheet

WRITE YOUR FREE ONLINE WILL

Use a solicitor

When writing your will, we recommend you use a solicitor to make sure your wishes are clear and understandable.

Before meeting with your solicitor, it is worth thinking about the following:

The rough value of any assets you own - house, shares, savings.
Any outstanding debts you may have.
What kinds of gifts you want to leave to people close to you, and any charities you may wish to include.
Who you would like to be the executors of your will – the people who will carry out the instructions within your will.

Once your will has been written and you are happy that it reflects your wishes, it needs to be signed by you and two witnesses. A witness must not be a direct family member (this includes your spouse/civil partner) or a beneficiary in your will. Your solicitor may be able to arrange suitable witnesses on your behalf.

Types of gifts

Gifts can be large or small – you do not have to be wealthy to be able to make a difference to patient care in our hospitals. We are so grateful for every gift we receive.

These are the types of gifts you can choose to leave in your will:

- Residuary gift – once you have provided for your family and friends, you may wish to leave a percentage of your estate to our hospitals.

- Pecuniary gift – you may wish to specify a fixed sum of money to leave to our hospitals, which can be 'index-linked' so the value is maintained in line with inflation.

- Specific gift – a valuable item such as artwork, a ring or a house.

Making changes to your existing will

You can add a gift to your existing will at any time, via a codicil. This is a legally valid addition to a will, used to make specific changes or amendments, whilst leaving the rest unchanged.

We recommend using a solicitor who can advise you or write a codicil on your behalf. The codicil needs to be signed and witnessed, then kept with (but not attached to) the original will.

If you want to make numerous changes to your existing will, it can be easier to rewrite your will.

Our legacy promise to you

When you leave a gift in your will to Bristol & Weston Hospitals Charity:

We’ll answer any questions honestly and quickly
We won’t put you under pressure – this is a big decision so please decide in your own time
Your loved ones come first – we respect that and won’t try to change your wishes
We’ll use your special gift wisely and effectively
You don’t have to tell us your decision – we respect your right to privacy
You can come and see our service first hand – just let us know
If you want your gift to be spent in an area that’s special to you, we’ll arrange it.

Let us know if you've made a legacy gift

If you decide to leave us a gift in your will, please let us know so that we can thank you and keep you up to date with how legacy income is improving patient care in Bristol city centre and Weston hospitals. By letting us know, it helps us plan our work for the future.

Please contact Amber on [email protected] or 0117 927 7120.

WRITE YOUR FREE ONLINE WILL