Leaving a gift in your Will to Mencap: Why your gift matters
For 80 years, our supporters have been creating change for people with a learning disability A learning disability is to do with the way someone's brain works. It makes it harder for someone to learn, understand or do things. and their families and carers. With your support, we won’t stop until everyone can achieve their full potential.
The 1.5 million people in the UK with a learning disability face barriers every day, are sometimes locked away, and are often excluded from things many take for granted.
Your gift to Mencap can help them thrive.
How to leave a gift in your Will
1. Download your free guide
Complete our short form to instantly download your Gifts in Wills guide full of information and inspiration. We'll also send you a copy by email.
2. Learn more
Our guide covers the entire process of leaving a gift in your Will: from the types of gifts you can choose, to finding a solicitor, to the impact you'll leave behind. Take time to understand your options and the right path for you.
3. Take the first step
Write your Will online, over the phone, or in person with a solicitor. Feel confident and inspired by the legacy you're creating.
Your support means so much
Around half of Mencap’s fundraised income Income is all the money you get from things like paid jobs and government benefits. comes from gifts in Wills. That means we simply wouldn’t be able to do what we do without legacies from supporters like you.
Your gift, no matter the size, could help us:
- Campaign A campaign is when people work together to try to change something. to make sure no one with a learning disability is wrongly held in an inpatient mental health hospital
- Deliver impactful advice via our helpline to people with a learning disability and their families and carers
- Empower people with a learning disability to experience Experience is when you have learned or tried something before. new things, live happily, and achieve their dreams.
“By leaving a gift in her Will to Mencap, my mother hoped to leave a legacy that would improve the quality of life for others” - Joe
Joe's aunt, Bernie, was a lifelong campaigner for
equality
Equality is when everyone is treated fairly.
in housing and health. Wanting to make an equally powerful difference, her mother, Clare, left a gift in her Will to Mencap that’ll create a fairer future for people with a learning disability.
Write your Will for free
We’ve partnered with Will writing experts Farewill and the National Free Wills Network so you can write your Will for free.
We hope that when using our partners, you’ll choose to leave a gift in your Will to Mencap. Your gift is more important now than ever.
Speak to our Gifts in Wills team
If you’d like to talk through the decision, learn about the impact your gift could have, or just have a chat about how things work, please don't hesitate to get in touch with us.
And if you’re planning to, or already have, remembered Mencap in your Will, we'd love to hear from you. It’ll help us plan for the future and give us the opportunity to thank you properly.
Support families in need
When you include a gift to Mencap in your Will, you’re doing something powerful. You’re helping other families find support, advice and peace of mind.
After coming to Mencap for exactly that, Paul and Richard both left a gift in their Will, to make sure that we can be there for every family of someone with a learning disability. Join them by remembering Mencap in your Will.
Yes. In fact, in the UK, over a third of people choose to leave a gift to charity in addition to the gifts they leave for family and friends.
You can leave different types of gifts in your Will, from specific items like jewellery or artwork, to cash, to a residual part of your estate. Residuary gifts are important to charities because their value keeps up with inflation, meaning your generous gift holds its value over time.
Remembering a charity in your Will can reduce the overall inheritance
tax
Tax is the money that pays for things like schools, hospitals and the police. There are different types of taxes like income tax, VAT and council tax.
rate on the rest of your estate. This is because gifts left to charities, including Mencap, are exempt from Inheritance
Tax
Tax is the money that pays for things like schools, hospitals and the police. There are different types of taxes like income tax, VAT and council tax.
. However, this is a complex area of
law
Laws are the rules that everyone in the country has to follow. If you don't follow the rules you can get in trouble with the police.
so check the latest government
guidance
Guidance means being given clear instructions to be able to do something well.
.
At Mencap, we cover the cost of a simple Will for our supporters. By pairing you with our trusted partners, you can write your Will free of charge either online, over the phone or in person, depending on where you live. We hope that in return you’ll consider leaving us a gift in your Will.
Yes, Mencap takes part in Free Wills Month in March and October. But you can write your Will for free all year round thanks to our partnership with the National Free Wills network and Farewill.
Yes, you can write your Will for free online. At Mencap, we’ve partnered with the specialists at Farewill so you can write your Will from home in as little as 15 minutes. You’ll also have the opportunity to make a donation to charity in your Will at the same time, and we’d greatly appreciate if you chose to remember Mencap.
Your gift is more important today than ever before.
Our registered charity name: Royal Mencap Society
Our registered charity address: 6 Cyrus Way, Peterborough, PE7 8HP
Our registered charity number: 222377 (England & Wales) SC041079 (Scotland)
Please contact our Legacy Administration Team:
- Phone number: 020 7696 5513
- Email: [email protected]
Emma Young