Legacy giving has gone up by 7% since last year.   

An annual report has found an increase in the amount of money being left to charities as legacies. 

Legacy Futures has published findings from its most recent Legacy Monitor, the legacy giving consultancy’s quarterly research programme. 

The Legacy Monitor compiles data from a consortium of 81 of the UK’s leading charities, representing almost half of the charity legacy market, to analyse the current state of the legacy market.  

Income reported by consortium members in the latest year to June 2024 was up +1% on the previous year.  

This growth has been driven by an increase in the number of bequests (gifts in wills), up 7% since last year, reaching 62,100 bequests.  

The growth in bequests is primarily a result of continuing improvements in the probate process at HM Courts and Tribunals Service, which is continuing to process more grants than applications, reducing the backlog of cases.  

Average gift values for residual gifts have fallen slightly by 2.5% to £64,400 due to the cooling housing market.   

Pecuniary (fixed monetary) gift values continue to remain static as they have done for the past year.  

The legacy performance data was compiled using responses provided by the Legacy Monitor’s consortium members, together with wider economic research.   

Ashley Rowthorn, CEO of Legacy Futures, said: "Looking ahead, the increase in bequests from probate and a more optimistic outlook on house prices lead us to expect the legacy market to remain resilient, with modest growth through the rest of 2024.   

“This is encouraging news for the charity sector, which has faced significant challenges in recent years due to the cost-of-living crisis and delays in probate. The stability we’re seeing in the legacy giving forecast enables charities to plan more confidently for the future, making decisions and laying out strategies with a degree of insight into how legacies are predicted to perform."