# HMCTS commits to enhancing probate reporting & introducing charitable estate indicator

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2023/11/21/hmcts-commits-to-enhancing-probate-reporting-introducing-charitable-estate-indicator/
- Published: 2023-11-21T11:59:50+00:00
- Author: Melanie May

**His Majesty’s Courts & Tribunal Service (HMCTS) is to enhance the service it provides
for the charity sector, including more indepth reporting on estates at probate and
the development of a new charitable estate indicator.  **

In more detail, the actions it has committed to include:

 * Providing more regular updates and forecasts, including greater clarity on the
   level of stopped estates held up in the system (often due to missing or incomplete
   documentation or errors in the application); 
 * Delivering a programme of webinars for charities to provide further information
   and an update on the Probate Registry’s approach; and 
 * Adding a form field on digital applications (80% of cases) identifying whether
   the estate includes a charitable gift, enabling better future tracking, forecasting
   and normalising the inclusion of charitable gifts in Wills. 

This comes as a result of requests from [Remember A Charity](https://www.rememberacharity.org.uk/)
and the [Institute of Legacy Management](https://legacymanagement.org.uk/) (ILM),
which have been working with the Probate Registry to keep the impact on charities
of any probate delays front of mind and ensure that charities are kept informed 
of changes and service issues.

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The Probate Registry has also confirmed that it is working towards the target of
reducing unprocessed applications in the system to a head of work of around 30,000
estates at any one time.

While 2023 has seen probate applications reach record levels, increasing the volume
of estates awaiting processing, HMCTS has reported that September and October were
particularly productive months, reducing the backlog with provisional data showing
significantly higher output of grants issued than applications received. This follows
the recruitment of 100 new staff members, training and upskilling of the probate
team, and improvements to the digital application platform made earlier this year.

The ILM and Remember A Charity have welcomed the new commitments, with Matthew Lagden,
CEO at the Institute of Legacy Management, saying:

> “There is no doubt that, once in place, these measures will help charities to 
> forecast future legacy income more accurately, access regular updates and information
> and, above all, realise gifts in a more timely fashion as waiting times come down.
> We thank HMCTS for their understanding and their positive commitment towards supporting
> the charity sector.”

Lucinda Frostick, Director of Remember A Charity, added: 

> “Legacy giving is a lifeline for thousands of charities and community-based organisations
> and, particularly during such tough times for the sector, any delays can have 
> a hefty impact on charities and their ability to deliver services.
>  
> “We know that there is a way to go yet before much charitable income will be released
> from the probate system, but the recent progress and these new measures are great
> news for charities. In particular, the ability to identify the proportion of charitable
> estates in the system at any one time really could be transformative. Not only
> will it help charities budget for likely legacy income, but it effectively hardwires
> the charitable ask into the application process, helping to normalise legacy giving
> to executors, solicitors and others.”

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