Now in its 15th year, Remember A Charity Week (9-15 September 2024) brings together member charities, campaign supporters (solicitor firms and will-writers), wealth advisers, and partners to encourage more people to consider leaving a gift to charity in their will.
I began my role as chair of Remember A Charity in January this year, so this will be my first Remember A Charity Week in the position, and what an amazing one it’s set to be.
There’s much I’m looking forward to seeing, including the following highlights.
Celebrating with celebrity support
It’s been an honour to have etymologist and Countdown star Susie Dent work alongside us to promote “willanthropy” this year. Working with Susie, we’re exploring the power of words to inspire the nation to consider leaving a charitable legacy.
Our research shows that 35% of people avoid conversations about wills because they don’t want to think about death, yet two-thirds agree it’s important to have these conversations with loved ones. Some 60% of adults believe that words can transform hearts and minds and inspire significant change – which is exactly what we believe promoting the term “willanthropy” can achieve.
Throughout the week, we aim to further inspire the giving public to join the willanthropy movement, by showcasing the collective power of this special way of giving.
Mapping out the impact
To mark this year’s campaign, we’ll be launching the Great Map of Willanthropy – an interactive map of legacy giving showcasing the impact that legacy gifts to UK charities have had throughout the world.
Our members have each been given ten pins to map out where in the world tangible differences have been made because of a gift in a will – and where even more could be achieved through the power of legacies.
Our aim is to bring to life just how powerful and far-reaching legacies are, while highlighting the potential impact that future gifts could have.
Small numbers, big difference
While fewer than 1% of charitable estates in recent years have included gifts over £500,000, these donations generate more than one-quarter of the sector’s legacy income.
Based on the current UK legacy market value, this equates to around £1bn annually. Imagine what could be achieved through unlocking the potential of engaging with those high-net-worth supporters.
Reasons for optimism
Most people in the charity sector know how tough the last few years have been, with both the cost-of-living crisis and residual challenges we’re still facing because of the pandemic.
Plus, HM Courts and Tribunals Service delays in probate processing led to a significant lag in charities receiving notifications and income, causing a lack of confidence in short to medium-term income. Although, I’m pleased to see that this situation has been improving over the last few months.
All these challenges facing the sector show us why celebrating the impact of legacies this Remember A Charity Week is so important. As a collective force, we as a sector can highlight the power and longevity of gifts in wills, without which many organisations wouldn’t have been able to achieve all that they have over the last few years.
High value legacies
Just in the time that I’ve been chair, Remember A Charity has started to do a lot more work around supporters who can leave transformational gifts. Our message is and always has been that every gift makes a difference, and that remains true.
But we are doing as much as we can to support our members to develop their high value legacy programmes and to engage with individuals whose gifts make the greatest impact.
This includes working with wealth advisers and exploring how charities can increase their engagement with the professionals trusted to advise individuals whose gifts can make a huge difference.
Remember A Charity’s recent report – Understanding the Role of Wealth Advisers in Growing Legacy Giving – is available free for everyone and is designed to help organisations start or evolve their high-values legacies programme.
Equipping and engaging
Members are supported with the promotion of their own legacy giving campaigns through access to Remember A Charity Week assets such as video, graphics, messaging and the sharing of ideas. Campaign supporters are engaged to help start conversations with their clients and further normalise discussions around legacies.
If you only do one thing this Remember A Charity Week
If you can only do one thing this year, I encourage you to celebrate publicly and proudly what legacies have helped your organisation and beneficiaries achieve.
Supporting a charity through leaving a gift in a will is a very valid and now much more normalised way of supporting a charity. A decision made in someone’s lifetime based on what they love in life can help sustain a charity and those it serves to benefit.
Talking about legacy giving as an option to your supporters will help them better understand what their gift could achieve once it’s received.
Remember A Charity is always looking at new ways to talk with passion and positivity about the impact gifts in wills have. We thrive on the collaboration with our membership and to be able to talk as a collective to the public is a special thing.
I feel enormously privileged to be chair of such a dynamic campaign, and am very excited for the future and to be involved with supporting charities in finding creative and strategic ways to interact with their audiences.
So, this September, let’s all get talking legacies.
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