# Bequests in wills made via Co-op Legal Services rise 61% in a year

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2021/05/20/bequests-in-wills-made-via-co-op-legal-services-rise-61-in-a-year/
- Published: 2021-05-20T08:40:00+01:00
- Author: Melanie May

**The number of wills made via Co-op Legal Services including a charitable bequest
rose by 61% in 2020, with cancer charities (42%) and local causes (21%) most widely
named as beneficiaries, it has revealed.**

[Co-op Legal Services](https://www.co-oplegalservices.co.uk/) asks all its will-
writing clients to consider the option of leaving a charitable bequest, and during
the year, almost a third (32%) of Co-op wills included a gift to charity. 

Additional figures from the Law Society show that while 59% of the UK public don’t
have a will, [7% of people made or updated their will during the first lockdown](https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/contact-or-visit-us/press-office/press-releases/law-society-research-respondents-made-or-updated-their-will-during-the-first-covid-19-lockdown)
and that [one fifth of people with a will have included a charitable gift](https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/contact-or-visit-us/press-office/press-releases/wills-overlooked-as-a-way-of-giving-to-charity).
Smee & Ford data shows that more than 100 people in the UK are now choosing to support
their favourite causes this way every day.

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James Antoniou, Head of Wills at Co-op Legal Services, said:

> “In an extraordinarily difficult year, when so many suffered hardship, it’s incredible
> to see such a huge increase in the number of people wanting to leave money to 
> their chosen charity. Deciding who inherits your money or part of your estate 
> is a highly personal matter and making people aware of their options is the key
> to ensuring that their wishes are clearly specified in their will.”

Rob Cope, Director of [Remember A Charity](https://www.rememberacharity.org.uk/),
of which Co-op Legal Services is a partner, commented:

> “Legacy income has been vital for charities, particularly over the past year when
> events and retail were so badly hit, and that’s why continued reports of the public’s
> increased appetite for legacy giving is so welcome. People are looking for ways
> to express the things that matter most to them in life and it’s wonderful to see
> that legacies are so often felt to be such a rewarding way of giving. The legal
> sector plays a critical role in making clients aware of the option of giving in
> this way.”

This year’s Remember A Charity Week takes place on 6-12 September.