Leave a gift in your Will

*Subject to the payment of my debts, funeral and testamentary expenses, I give the whole/ % of my estate not otherwise disposed of by this Will to:

Royal Voluntary Service, Hanley Centre, 29 Charles Street, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST1 3JP

A registered charity in England and Wales (charity number (1015988), Scotland (SC038924), for the general purposes of Royal Voluntary Service and I declare that the receipt of its Treasurer or other proper officer shall be a full and sufficient charge.

*I give free of tax to:

Royal Voluntary Service, Hanley Centre, 29 Charles Street, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST1 3JP

A registered charity in England and Wales (charity number 1015988), Scotland (SC038924), the sum of £ for the general purposes of Royal Voluntary Service and I declare that the receipt of its Treasurer or other proper officer shall be of a full and sufficient charge.

To include Royal Voluntary Service in your Will, you need:

• Our Name - Royal Voluntary Service

• Our Registered Office Address Hanley Centre, 29 Charles Street Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST1 3JP

• Our Registered Charity Number (England and Wales) 1015988 & (Scotland) SC038924

You may find using our example Will wording helpful.

If you do not already have a solicitor to help with your Will, there are many solicitors and Will writers who can help you to make or update a Will. 

You may be interested in our partnership with the National Free Wills Network.  This partnership could allow you to make or update a simple Will for free with support from a solicitor local to you.

Find out how you can get your free simple Will.

If you would prefer not to use this free Will service, the Law Society’s list of solicitors near you may be of interest.

• In England and Wales, go to lawsociety.org.uk, or call 020 7242 1222.
• In Scotland, contact the Law Society of Scotland at lawscot.org.uk, or call 0131 226 7411.
• In Northern Ireland, contact the Law Society of Northern Ireland at lawsoc-ni.org, or call 028 9023 1614.

Alternatively, there are many professional Will writing providers, and you may wish to consider some of these. It’s important to note that Will writing providers are not necessarily regulated law firms.  We would therefore encourage you to consider the credentials of a potential Will writing provider and ensure you are happy that the service and expertise offered is appropriate for your circumstances.

This depends on which service you use and how complicated your Will is. Many charities like Royal Voluntary Service, have free Will services which can cover the cost of writing or updating a simple Will. 

Learn more about our free Wills service

Many people choose to leave a “residuary” gift of a percentage share of their estate to Royal Voluntary Service alongside gifts to loved ones.

The reason that this type of gift is usually the most beneficial one for Royal Voluntary Service is that its value would not be diminished as a result of inflation.  This can also provide peace of mind to people wishing to support us.

You can also choose to leave a pecuniary gift or a specific gift.

Take a look at our example Will wording.

Yes, you can leave a gift to Royal Voluntary Service for a particular service or geographical area or such-like.

There are two ways that you can do this. You can make a gift and express a non-binding wish that the Royal Voluntary Service uses your gift for a particular purpose along the following lines:

“It is my wish but without creating any legally binding obligation that my gift is used by Royal Voluntary Service in the following way...”.

Royal Voluntary Service will strive to follow your wishes if it can but will have flexibility to use your gift for other purposes such as in the event that circumstances have changed, for example a particular service is no longer being run.

Alternatively, you can make a gift and provide that the Royal Voluntary Service must use your gift for a particular service or geographical area or such-like.  If so, Royal Voluntary Service must use your gift for that purpose. However, there is a risk that we may not be able to use your gift for this purpose; for example, our services may need to be adapted over time to meet the needs of our communities. If we cannot use the gift for the purposes you specify, there is a risk that your gift may fail.

If you do wish to restrict a gift to us in this way, speaking to us directly about your plans will help ensure that the above risks can be minimised as far as possible; the relevant contact details are below.

Alternatively, you can discuss the options and risks with your solicitor or Will writer if you prefer.

If you would like more information on restricting your gift, please get in touch by emailing legacies@royalvoluntaryservice.org.uk or calling 0800 731 9197.

Updating an existing Will to include a gift to Royal Voluntary Service can be easy to do, and you may be able to do this without any cost.

Learn more about how you could have a simple Will updated for free.