I give to the Society for Endocrinology of Starling House, 1600 Bristol Parkway North, Bristol, BS34 8YU, Charity Registration Number: 266813 the sum of £_____ [amount in words] for its general purposes and I direct that the receipt of the Treasurer or other duly authorised officer shall be a sufficient discharge to my Executors.

I give to the Society for Endocrinology of Starling House, 1600 Bristol Parkway North, Bristol, BS34 8YU, Charity Registration Number: 266813 [description of item(s)] absolutely for its general purposes and I direct that the receipt of the Treasurer or other duly authorised officer shall be a sufficient discharge to my Executors.

I give to Society for Endocrinology of Starling House, 1600 Bristol Parkway North, Bristol, BS34 8YU, Charity Registration Number: 266813 [proportion of residue] for its general purposes and I direct that the receipt of the Treasurer or other duly authorised officer shall be a sufficient discharge to my Executors.

If you are happy for the Society to use your gift for general purposes, it can be used in a number of different ways to support members, including grants and awards, development of new activities based on member needs and other benefits. 

If you specify a particular area of the Society’s work then it will only be used for that purpose.  If the Society stops doing that work in the future the trustees will need to decide how best to use it instead, but this will always be to support endocrinologists in their careers. 

It is entirely up to you how much you leave.  We award grants of varying levels depending on how they support the individual member.  Any amount that you decide to leave as a gift in your Will, will be used to support the next generation of endocrinologists.

If you want to amend your Will to solely add in the Society for Endocrinology you may not need to write a new Will, instead you can use a simple form called a codicil.  We would always recommend that you contact a solicitor, to ensure that any codicil is valid. 

However, it is important to ensure your Will is up to date if there have been changes since you last wrote it.  For example, you may need to change your Will to reflect changes in your family, additional grandchildren for instance, divorce or the death of a beneficiary.  

We would always recommend that you talk to a reputable solicitor when you are making or changing your Will. 

They will help you ensure that any wording is correct so that your Will is valid and your wishes will be followed just as you wanted. 

You should always look to ensure your personal bequests are considered first so that you know that your loved ones will be looked after.  If you want to leave a bequest to a charity alongside your family and friends, you can do this by specifying a set amount, or leave the remainder of your estate to a charity once all your specific bequests have been made. 

If you change your mind all you need to do is consult a solicitor and update your Will.  There is no obligation to the Society to retain the bequest, even if you have made us aware that the charity has been included at one point. 

Whilst there is no need to let the Society know that you have written it into your Will, being aware that there is a legacy in the future will help the Society to plan better.  It will also mean that we can thank you for your gift and ensure that you receive information about the work of the charity and how your gift will help in the future. 

When you leave a gift in your Will, you can choose how it’s used to make a difference. Both restricted and unrestricted gifts play a vital role in helping us support the endocrine community, they just do so in different ways.

Restricted (Purposed) Gifts

A restricted gift allows you to direct your legacy towards a specific area of our work that matters most to you. For example, you might wish to:

• Fund early-career training and development
• Support research grants or scientific meetings
• Help patient engagement and education initiatives

By restricting your gift, you create a legacy in a specific area of endocrinology that reflects your personal interests and values. It’s a meaningful way to ensure your support continues to make the kind of difference you care about most.

However, because the needs of our members and the specialty can evolve over time, we encourage supporters to include flexible wording where possible. For example, allowing the Society’s trustees to redirect your gift if your chosen area of work is no longer active in the future.

Unrestricted (General) Gifts

An unrestricted gift is one of the most powerful ways to support the Society. It allows us to use your legacy wherever it’s needed most; whether that’s funding new research, supporting early-career endocrinologists, or responding to emerging challenges in our field.

This flexibility ensures your gift continues to have the greatest possible impact, even as the priorities of endocrinology change in the years ahead.

There are also tax benefits to leaving a gift in your Will to a charity as it can lower the level of inheritance tax (IHT) that is paid on an estate. Currently all legacies to charities usually attract full IHT exemption. Therefore, the inclusion of charitable gifts in a Will can substantially reduce the IHT burden on an estate either to zero, or at a reduced rate.

The current threshold for Inheritance Tax is £325,000 and so everything above that is taxed at 40%. As an example if your estate is worth £500,000 and your tax-free threshold is £325,000. The inheritance tax charged will be 40% of £175,000 (£500,000 minus £325,000).

If you were to leave everything above £325,000 to charity the tax bill on your estate would be £0. The estate can also pay inheritance tax at a reduced rate of 36% on some assets if you leave 10% or more of the ‘net value’ to charity in your will. (The net value is the estate’s total value minus any debts.)*