Around one in three pounds raised by UK charities each year comes from legacy gifts — bequests left to charity in a will. For charities working on breast cancer, these gifts are transformative: they fund the long-term programmes that monthly fundraising alone cannot sustain, and they often come from people who themselves were touched by breast cancer in some way during their lifetime.
This guide is written for anyone considering leaving a legacy gift to a breast cancer charity. It explains how legacy giving works in the UK, the different forms it takes, the tax considerations, and the practical steps required to do it properly. You should always take independent legal advice when making or updating a will — but reading this first will help you have a more informed conversation with your solicitor.
What is a legacy gift?
A legacy gift, or charitable bequest, is a gift to a registered charity left in your will. It takes effect after your death and is administered by the executors of your estate. Legacy gifts can be of any size — from a few hundred pounds to many millions — and there are several different forms a legacy can take, each with different tax and practical implications.
In the UK, charitable bequests are exempt from inheritance tax. This means the full value of the gift goes to the charity rather than being reduced by tax. In some circumstances, leaving 10% or more of your estate to charity can also reduce the inheritance tax rate on the rest of your estate — a substantial benefit for larger estates.
The three main types of legacy gift
When you leave a charitable bequest, there are three main forms it can take. Choosing the right one depends on your overall estate plans and what you want the gift to achieve.
- A pecuniary legacy — a fixed sum of money (for example, '£10,000 to Breast Cancer Awareness'). Simple and predictable.
- A residuary legacy — a percentage share of what is left of your estate after other bequests, debts and expenses are settled (for example, '25% of my residuary estate to Breast Cancer Awareness'). Inflation-proof, since the value rises with the value of your estate.
- A specific legacy — a named asset, such as a property, a piece of jewellery or a portfolio of shares (for example, 'my shareholding in X plc to Breast Cancer Awareness'). Useful if you want a particular asset to fund a particular cause.
Most legacy fundraisers will gently encourage residuary gifts because they remain proportionate to the size of your estate over time. A pecuniary gift of £5,000 written 20 years ago is worth far less in real terms today than it was when written; a residuary gift of 5% retains its real value.
Inheritance tax and the 10% reduction
Inheritance tax in the UK is currently charged at 40% on the value of an estate above the nil-rate band (£325,000) and the residence nil-rate band (up to £175,000 if leaving a home to a direct descendant). Charitable legacies are entirely exempt from inheritance tax — they are deducted from the estate before the tax is calculated.
There is also a long-standing rule that if you leave 10% or more of the net value of your estate to charity, the inheritance tax rate on the remainder of your estate is reduced from 40% to 36%. For larger estates, this can mean that increasing a charitable bequest from 5% to 10% costs the residual beneficiaries less than you might assume — and the charity gains substantially.
Inheritance tax rules change periodically and can be complex. Always confirm the current position with your solicitor or financial adviser at the time you are drafting or updating your will.
How to leave a legacy gift to Breast Cancer Awareness
If you decide to leave a legacy gift to Breast Cancer Awareness, the practical steps are straightforward. Speak to a solicitor about your overall will (or update an existing will using a codicil). Provide them with the following details so the gift is properly identified:
- Charity name: World Aid Network (operating Breast Cancer Awareness)
- Registered office: International House, 51 Borough High Street, London SE1 1NB, United Kingdom
- Form of gift: pecuniary, residuary or specific (with the exact wording recommended by your solicitor)
- Any restriction or expression of wishes (for example, that the gift should support breast cancer screening programmes specifically)
If you would like to discuss your gift in confidence with our team — including any restrictions or specific countries you would like your legacy to support — please contact us. We approach every legacy conversation with care and discretion, and we never use these conversations to pressure prospective donors.
Telling family about your decision (or not)
Some donors discuss their charitable bequests with family members in advance; others prefer to keep them private. There is no right answer, but it is worth thinking through. If a charitable legacy will materially affect the inheritance of close family members, raising it during your lifetime can avoid surprise or distress later. Many families respond positively when they understand the personal motivation behind the gift.
Why legacy gifts matter so much to breast cancer charities
Legacy gifts are the single largest source of unrestricted income for many UK charities, including ours. They allow us to fund multi-year programmes — building screening capacity that takes years to deliver, training the next generation of community health workers, and committing to long-term partnerships with overseas clinics. None of this would be possible on monthly fundraising income alone.
If you are considering this kind of gift, on behalf of the women whose access to breast cancer care it will eventually fund: thank you. It is one of the most consequential things any supporter can do.
Common questions families ask about legacy giving
A few questions come up often when supporters or their families are considering legacy giving for the first time. Honest answers help.
'Will my family lose out?' Not unless you choose for them to. The vast majority of legacy gifts are residuary — a percentage of whatever remains after specific bequests to family and friends. Many supporters leave 1%, 5% or 10% of their estate to a charity while ensuring family members are still the primary beneficiaries. Others leave a fixed sum (a pecuniary legacy), which means the charity receives an exact amount and the rest of the estate is unaffected.
'Do I need to tell the charity in advance?' No. Legacy gifts are completely private until probate. You are not obliged to inform the charity, and we will not contact you to ask. Some supporters do choose to let us know — usually because they would like to discuss what their gift might fund — but this is entirely optional and changes nothing about the gift itself.
'What if I want to change my mind later?' You can. A will is a living document. You can update it as often as your circumstances change — through a codicil for small amendments, or a new will for larger changes. Many people review their will every five to ten years or after a major life event.
'Will inheritance tax apply?' UK charitable bequests are exempt from inheritance tax. In addition, if you leave 10% or more of your taxable estate to charity, the inheritance tax rate on the rest of your estate may be reduced from 40% to 36%. A solicitor can advise on whether this is relevant to your circumstances.
Working with your solicitor on a charitable legacy
Including a charity in your will is straightforward, and any qualified solicitor or will-writing service will be able to help. The two pieces of information they will need are the charity's full registered name and its registered charity number — both of which are public and listed on the Charity Commission register.
If you are using a free will service such as Free Wills Month, the National Free Wills Network or Octopus Legacy, the process is even simpler. These services partner with charities to offer fully drafted wills at no cost to the supporter, in exchange for the option (never the obligation) to include a charitable gift. Many UK breast cancer charities, including ours, participate in these schemes and can put you in touch with a partner solicitor in your area.
Beyond the legal mechanics, our advice is consistent: take your time. There is no rush. A legacy gift is one of the most personal decisions any supporter makes, and it should be made when you have had the conversations you want to have — with family, with a solicitor, and with yourself — and not before.
Reviewing your will every few years is also worth doing. Family circumstances change, charities change, and a legacy decision made at 55 may not match what you would decide at 75. The mechanics of updating a legacy are usually simple — a short codicil drafted by a solicitor will adjust the gift without requiring a new will. Many supporters find that revisiting their will every five to ten years, and confirming that their legacy plans still reflect their priorities, gives both them and their family quiet peace of mind. The cumulative effect of legacy giving on UK breast cancer charities is enormous — it underpins much of the long-term research and frontline work that annual fundraising income alone could not sustain — but every individual gift starts as one supporter's private decision, made carefully and at their own pace.
