By leaving a gift to Luckley House School you are passing on something wonderful. You leave behind a legacy that will help secure Luckley’s future success – shaping the next generation to go forth and do well for themselves and their communities. A community that requires doers, thinkers and leaders. Throughout its history, Luckley has flourished from financial gifts and investments. In 1959, weeks before her death, Luckley’s founder, Miss Bertha Drake, generously gave the School over to the Church Society, knowing that her beloved School and its traditions would be preserved for future generations of pupils.
The Impact of Giving
Your donation contributes to funding important projects and initiatives that the School could not otherwise undertake. As an independent school, we are completely reliant on the kindness and generosity of benefactors to ensure the School continues to thrive with the infrastructure and facilities needed. For example, many of the School’s capital projects, such as The Whitty Theatre and the all-weather pitch are the result of large financial contributions to the School from generous benefactors. Both of which have an impact on the standards achieved by our pupils as well as the enjoyment of the Luckley and local community. We believe that the presence of a Christian education, one built on the foundations of love and service and delivered with excellence supports pupils’ transformational journey into adulthood; equipping them to live their lives well.
Legacy Giving is Free of Inheritance Tax
Every bequest made is free of inheritance tax, and this can be a factor when planning your estate after your death. Leaving a legacy to charity can help you to reduce the inheritance tax bill payable by your estate. If you meet certain circumstances, the inheritance tax bill can be reduced from 40% to 36%, if 10% of the net value of your estate is left to charity, for example. We advise that you seek professional legal advice from your solicitor about inheritance tax. You can also find additional information by visiting the HMRC website, which includes an online calculator to understand whether a charitable legacy will meet the qualifying criteria.
How to Leave Your Gift
Leaving a gift in your will to Luckley House School is a very personal and important decision and one only you can make. If you are considering bequeathing a gift to the School or have remembered Luckley in your will, we’d love to hear from you. Not only will this help us make plans for the future of the School, it also means we can thank you properly for your support. Anything you tell us will be confidential and not legally binding. You may wish to tell us about the type of gift you have in mind; a monetary contribution, percentage of your estate, shares, property or other valuables. By doing so we can talk you through the process and make sure that you receive the recognition within the Luckley community that is right for you. You can then take steps to have this information written into your will, under advice from an independent solicitor.
If you are an international resident with an estate spanning more than one country you may need to make sure that the will prepared in your country of residence is complimented with one to cover your estate(s) overseas. Your solicitor will be able to provide further advice on this matter.
Will Writing
How you choose to divide your assets is completely up to you. You may wish to read about the most popular Legacy Options (below) in the first instance. Writing a will can be easier and less expensive than imagined. Writing a simple will online for yourself can cost as little as £50. There are also other services such as freewills.co.uk that will allow you to write a simple will for free, which must include a signature and two witnesses. If you already have a will, you can contact your solicitor to make the change to include a gift to Luckley House School, if this is your wish. Amendments will be charged as an extra cost although adding to an existing – adding a codicil – without making amendments to the existing will can save you time and money.
Understanding Legacy Options
There are many different ways to remember Luckley House School in your will. Your solicitor will be able to advise you on the options that are right for you. Below are some of the more common legacy gifts with brief explanations. When referring to estate, this is essentially everything you own. Bank accounts, pensions, stocks, shares, property, insurance policies and belongings all make up your estate. In your will, you will need to explain how every part of your estate should be dealt with when you are no longer around.
Pecuniary Legacy
A gift of a fixed sum of money. As long as there are sufficient funds left in the estate or assets worth the value of the pecuniary legacy, a pecuniary legacy will be paid. If there are not sufficient funds left in the estate, then all pecuniary legacies will have to be reduced in equal proportion, in a process known as abatement.
Specific Legacy
A gift of personal property, leaving specific assets such as real estate, works of art, stocks and shares or other valuables. A specific legacy can only be given if the asset in question is still in the possession of the estate at the time of death. For example, if the will states that “I give Rose Cottage to Luckley House School”, but Rose Cottage was sold a year before death, the legacy will be invalid, and the legatee will not receive anything from this term of the will. The gift cannot be substituted by other assets.
Residuary Legacy
A gift or percentage of your estate that remains after other amounts of money or property has been given to others, including debts and expenses.
Reversionary Legacy
A gift of money, asset or a percentage of your estate to the School that gives a named person the benefit of these assets during their lifetime.
Substitutional Legacy
A gift of your estate to other persons that reverts to the School if the named persons die before you.
Get in Touch
If you would like to speak to someone, contact our Development Manager at sarah.francis@luckleyhouseschool.org or call 0118 974 3246.
Alternatively, please complete our ENQUIRY FORM