Leave a gift in your will

Every year over 104,000 children, young people and their families experience the incredible warmth of Evelina London. 

They see first-hand the compassion and innovation that the team brings – from nurturing fragile tiny new-borns to world-first heart surgeries.

For more than 150 years Evelina London has helped transform the experience of care for children and young people. By joining the Evelina London family and leaving a gift in your will, yyou can support the hospital’s trailblazing care by helping go beyond what the NHS can provide.

We’re here to help

Leaving a gift in your will is a wonderful way to support Evelina London. But we know it can feel a bit daunting too. 

We’re members of the National Free Wills Network, which means that you can have a simple will written by a qualified solicitor, for free. 

If you already have a will, you can also amend it free of charge. Find out more about our free wills service.

Reach out

Our team is here to answer any questions that you have. Get in touch with our legacies team today.

What we leave behind is private and personal, and we promise that every query will be treated with care and complete discretion.

Glossary of terms

Some of the legal terms you may come across

• Will A document conforming to legal requirements that sets out what you want to happen to your property and the rest of your estate on your death.
• Beneficiary Any person who benefits under a will.
• Codicil A formal amendment to a will.
• Estate Everything you own at the time of your death.
• Executor The person you appoint to carry out the instructions in your will. Executors are usually family, friends or professional advisors (solicitor/bank manager/accountant).
• Inheritance Tax This tax is generally levied on an estate when somebody dies if it is valued over a certain amount. Contact us for more information about inheritance tax.
• Intestacy This is when someone dies without leaving a legally valid will. In these circumstances, the rules of Intestacy apply and these determine who will administer and who will benefit from the deceased’s estate. Further information on the rules of Intestacy can found on the HMRC website.
• Legacy/bequest Gift of personal or moveable property (including cash, shares, etc.) left in a will.
• Legatee The person who receives a legacy.
• Pecuniary legacy Making a gift of a fixed sum of money. You can link your legacy to the Retail Price Index to ensure that the value of the gift you make today is worth the same in the future. This will prevent your gift from decreasing in value over time.
• Probate The application to court after someone dies to prove the will is valid. This results in authority being granted to the executors via a Grant of Probate after any tax due is paid.
• Residuary estate Everything you own at the time of your death, minus any legacies you have made, your debts, funeral expenses and costs of winding up your estate.
• Residuary legacy Leaving a share of your estate. This is stated as all or as a percentage (%) of your remaining estate once all fees, outstanding costs and other gifts have been taken care of. Even a small percentage of your estate, after providing for family and loved ones, can make a real difference.
• Reversionary legacy This gift allows you to leave your estate, or part of it, on trust for the benefit of a particular person during their lifetime. They benefit from using the assets, or receiving the income from them, during their life. Upon their death, the assets pass to other chosen beneficiaries (called ‘reversionary beneficiaries’) such as Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital Charity.
• Specific legacy You can leave specific assets such as property, stocks and shares or other valuables if you wish.
• Testator (male) / Testatrix (female) The person making a will.
• Witness You must sign your will in the presence of two witnesses who must then sign the will after you.
  A witness (or the married partner of a witness) cannot benefit from a will. If a witness is a beneficiary (or the married partner or civil partner of a beneficiary), the will is still valid. However, the beneficiary will not be able to inherit under the will.