Legacies

Like you, we love to watch seals along our coastline, and want to learn more about them and how we can help to keep them safe. Our incredible volunteers have been monitoring seals and passing on our crucial research discoveries with relevant partners to protect seals for decades. To continue this work we need funding, and a large part of our income comes from people like you who, like us, care passionately about our amazing seals. With your support we can continue our pioneering work to help seals no matter what challenges lie ahead. We will always aim to inspire, empower and connect people to help wild seals thrive!

Leaving a gift in your will

This handy guide will take you through everything you need to know about leaving a gift to our charity the Seal Research Trust (also known as the Cornwall Seal Group Research Trust) in your Will, such as:

• The different types of gifts you can leave, to help you make the best decision for yourself and your loved ones.

• How to write or update your Will – taking you through the process from start to finish.

• Suggested wording that you can take to your legal adviser to make sure your wishes are carried out.

If you have any questions as you’re reading through, please email seals@sealresearchtrust.com

Four things to remember

Family comes first. You don’t have to choose between looking after your loved ones and supporting seals. You can choose to leave a gift after your friends and family have been taken care of. Every gift – no matter what size – has the power to make a lasting difference to our research to support making our seas safer for wild seals to thrive.

Your Will, your wishes. Making a Will is easy to put off, but it’s the only way to be sure your wishes are carried out. Without one, you may leave your loved ones facing uncertainty. And there’ll be no way to make sure your interest in and desire to help seals lives on.

It makes good financial sense Leaving a gift in your Will to charity like us can reduce the amount your estate pays in Inheritance Tax. That means you can make an even greater difference for your loved ones, and to seals.

Ease the pressure Making a Will means security for the people and causes you care about most. And peace of mind for you.

Types of gifts in Wills

We’re hugely grateful for every gift we receive.

There are two main types of gift you can leave to the Seal Research Trust in your Will. To make the best decision for your circumstances, we suggest you discuss the following options with your legal adviser.

Residuary gift - This is where you set aside a percentage of your remaining estate after funeral expenses, debts and other gifts have been paid. As you may not know the final value of your estate, you may find it easier to apportion gifts to your chosen beneficiaries (individuals or charities) by leaving residuary gifts.

Pecuniary gift - This is a gift of a specified sum of money. All gifts make a real difference to our ability to help seals, but it’s worth remembering that the eventual value of this type of gift is likely to be impacted by inflation. For example, a gift of £5,000 left today may only be worth £4,500 in ten years’ time.

Four steps to make or update your Will

Follow these steps to make sure that your loved ones will be taken care of and that your wishes are carried out when you die.

Remembering seals by supporting the Seal Research Trust in your Will helps us to continue our research and voice for seals.

STEP 1

Make a list of beneficiaries including people and/or organisations you’d like to leave money, property or possessions to.

STEP 2

Appoint up to four Executors to carry out the terms of your Will. They can be relatives, friends, or legal advisers.

STEP 3

Draw up or update your Will. Contact the Law Society to find a local solicitor (visit: solicitors.lawsociety.org.uk) who can draft or update your Will. If you’re including a gift to the Seal Research Trust, please use our suggested wording from the section below.

STEP 4

Safely store your Will. Make a copy of your Will and make sure someone you trust knows where the original is kept. Your legal adviser will often store it free of charge, or you can use the Probate Registry or National Wills Register.

Suggested wording for your gift

Your legal advisor can help you with wording to include in your Will, however the following may be helpful:

Residuary Legacy (percentage of your estate)

The recommended wording for a Residuary Legacy (general charitable purposes) is:

“I give [………………..](%) of the residue of my real and personal estate to the Seal Research Trust, Copperleaf Cottage, Phillack Hill, Hayle, Cornwall TR27 5AD (also known as Cornwall Seal Group Research Trust, registered charity number 1162936) absolutely for its general charitable purposes and the receipt of the Honorary Treasurer or the proper officer for the time being of the Seal Research Trust shall be a complete discharge to my executors.”

Pecuniary Legacy (a fixed sum of money)

The recommended wording for a Pecuniary Legacy (general charitable purposes) is:

“I give the sum of [………………..] pounds (£) free of inheritance tax to the Seal Research Trust, Copperleaf Cottage, Phillack Hill, Hayle, Cornwall TR27 5AD (also known as Cornwall Seal Group Research Trust, registered charity number 1162936) absolutely for its general charitable purposes and the receipt of the Honorary Treasurer or the proper officer for the time being of Seal Research Trust shall be a complete discharge to my executors.”

How you can pay less Inheritance Tax

Giving to charity could reduce your liability, so we’ve included the following information to help you ensure your Will makes the greatest possible difference to your loved ones and our globally rare seals.

Inheritance Tax (IHT) is based on the value of a person’s estate (i.e. everything you own) on their death and on certain gifts they may have made during their lifetime.

There will be a tax free sum called the ‘The Nil Rate Band’ or ‘Inheritance Tax threshold’ which is the value of your estate that is exempt from IHT. This is currently £325,000 for an individual and the portion of your estate over this amount may be subject to 40 percent IHT. Inheritance Tax will be calculated at a reduced rate of 36% on some assets if you leave 10% or more of the net value to charity in your will.

£325,000 may sound like a large sum of money but if you own property and/or have savings or investments, you may find that your estate is worth more than you thought. As mentioned here, taking professional advice can help you save your estate valuable funds to help your loved ones and/or charities.

Gifts in Wills to charities are exempt from IHT and can reduce or eliminate the tax liability.

Please seek professional advice when planning your estate. If you would like more information about donating to charity and reductions to Inheritance tax, you can find more information on the UK Gov Inheritance Tax calculator.

We hope that you have found this guide helpful. If you would like to know more about the Seal Research Trust and what we do please visit our website. If you decide not to leave something in your will then you may choose to make a donation to support us here: Donate

Thank you for your support and everything that you do to help our native, heritage, speciality seals!!