Hospice care is more than you think,
and it’s closer than you know.
But it wouldn’t exist without you.
A gift in your Will protects hospice
care for all, for now, forever.
£6m
is needed to fund our life-changing services every year
90%
of our funding comes from public donations, including gifts in Wills
1 in 5
children are supported by gifts in Wills
Leave a gift in your Will.
Help our care live on.
Helen & Douglas House is the world’s first children’s hospice. We have provided life-changing, pioneering hospice care since 1982.
When a child is diagnosed with a life-limiting or terminal condition, we help make this desperately difficult time just a little easier for children and their families.
In a comforting cocoon of care, we provide 24-hour medical, emotional and practical support, helping families create happy memories in the last years, weeks, or days they have left together.
But just as the ways we help people grow every year, the need also grows.
We’re able to help support 1 in 5 of the children who use the services at Helen & Douglas House because someone – a stranger, a neighbour, someone who never even used our services – decided children’s hospice care mattered enough to protect.
Your legacy makes a difference
Someone you’ll never meet made it possible for us to be here for your community.
Now we’re asking you to be that someone for the next generation. When you leave a gift in your Will to us, you ensure that when someone local to you googles symptoms at 3am, when a family needs those crucial words, when life feels impossible - we’re here.
Together, we can make sure that hospice care lives on for all, for now, forever.
Use our free service to write or update your Will
Helen & Douglas House offers a free Will-writing service that makes the process simple and accessible. You can complete it online, over the phone, or in person – whichever works best for you.
Here’s why an online Will is easy and convenient:
- Quick: The process takes just 15–20 minutes on average.
- Secure: Wills are legally binding and reviewed by experts.
- Free: No cost to write your Will.
- Peace of mind: Ensure your affairs are in order.
If you prefer, you can also complete your Will face-to-face or over the phone. Please call 020 4525 3605, quoting our code H&DFREE to find out more.
Our free Will-writing service is provided by Octopus Legacy.
Write a Will with your local solicitor
If you would prefer to pay for your Will and use your own solicitor, you can find a list of local solicitors through the Law Society.
Request more information
If you have any questions about leaving a gift in your Will to Helen & Douglas House or would like to visit the hospice, please get in touch.
Contact Alex Hegenbarth on 01865 799150 or email [email protected].
Writing a Will ensures your wishes are followed when it comes to distributing your assets. Whether you want to provide for your loved ones or leave a gift to charity, a clear and legally binding Will is essential.
Joanna and Beatrice's story
Joanna used her Will as a way to say thank you for the care that her daughter, Bea, received at our hospice, and to make sure that this care is there for others.
“I have chosen to leave a gift in my Will as a thank you for the superlative care, physical, emotional and respite that Helen & Douglas House gave to our daughter, Beatrice, and our family for six years. I hope that this gift will help them to continue giving their incomparable and compassionate care to other life-limited children and their families.”
Learn more
Read our blogs for more information and to help you decide if leaving a gift to us in your Will is right for you.
- Leaving a gift in your Will: Janet’s story
- How to write a Will: a simple guide
- Your gift, their future
- Frequently asked questions
Hear from some of the families who have been supported by gifts in Wills and discover how your gift could help shape the future of children who will die prematurely.
Have you already included Helen & Douglas House in your Will?
Thank you for including Helen & Douglas House in your Will. These very special gifts are vital to the support we give to local families.
You don’t have to let us know if you have included a gift to Helen & Douglas House, but we would love to thank you for this generosity and keep you informed about the impact your gift will have.
Fill in your details below to receive our guide to leaving a gift in your Will
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I leave a gift in my Will to Helen & Douglas House?
Many of our supporters kindly choose to leave a gift in their Will to Helen & Douglas House after providing for loved ones. This helps us support local children and families facing life-shortening conditions.
To include us in your Will, it is as simple as writing:
• ‘I leave 10% of my residual estate to…’
• ‘I leave £4,000 to…”
Followed by our charity details:
Charity name: Helen & Douglas House
Address: 14A Magdalen Road, Oxford, Oxfordshire, OX4 1RW
Registered charity number: 1085951
These gifts are invaluable and ensure continued support for those in need.
Why do I need a Will?
Writing a Will ensures your wishes are followed when it comes to distributing your assets. Whether you want to provide for your loved ones or leave a gift to charity, a clear and legally binding Will is essential.
Creating or amending your Will is especially important after any major change in your life, such as getting married (this cancels out any will you made before), getting separated or divorced, having a child, or moving house.
Helen & Douglas House offers a free Will-writing service that makes the process simple and accessible. You can complete it online, over the phone, or in person – whichever works best for you.
How do I write a Will?
You can contact a solicitor, or Will advisor, and write your Will together in person or over the phone.
Or you can create it using our free Will-writing service, provided by Octopus Legacy. You can complete your will online, over the phone, or in person – whichever works best for you.
Follow these three simple steps to write your will with Octopus Legacy:
- Answer questions: They’ll guide you through a series of questions to determine your wishes. The process takes just 15–20 minutes on average.
- Review and finalise: Experts will review your Will within 10 working days. Once ready, you’ll sign it to make it legally binding.
- Easy updates: Update your Will for free in the first year and for just £10 a year after that.
What types of gifts can I leave?
There are two main types of gifts you can leave in your Will:
Residuary gift
This is a percentage of your estate after all other gifts and expenses have been paid. Many people choose to add a percentage of their estate to Helen & Douglas House as this enables them to provide for loved ones first and the value does not diminish over time.
Pecuniary gift
This is a gift of a set amount of money. It is paid before residuary gifts and is likely to decrease in value over time.
Other gifts
If you would like to discuss any other types of gifts that you can leave to Helen & Douglas House, please get in touch with the team by emailing [email protected]
I’ve already written my Will; how do I change it?
A relatively simple change to your Will can be done through something called a codicil. This is an official and legally binding appendix which is ‘read’ alongside your Will.
You must sign a codicil and get it witnessed in the same way as witnessing a Will.
There’s no limit on how many codicils you can add to a Will.
Please get in touch with us by emailing [email protected] or calling 01865 799150 and we can send you a form.
Did I see you on TV?
Yes! We have joined forces with over 123 hospices across England, Scotland and Wales to raise awareness of the work we do. Our brilliant film, This Is Hospice Care, is being broadcast across all the major TV channels.
Do I need to tell you if I leave a gift to Helen & Douglas House in my Will?
Thank you for including Helen & Douglas House in your Will. These very special gifts are vital to the support we give to local families.
You don’t have to let us know if you have left a gift to Helen & Douglas House, but we would love to thank you for this generosity and keep you informed about the impact your gift will have.
If you would like to tell us you have included a gift to us in your will, you can do so using our pledger form.
Where can I find the terms and conditions of your free Will writing service?
You can find the terms & conditions for Octopus Legacy, who provide our free online will writing service, here: Terms & Conditions
How are 1 in 5 children supported by gifts in Wills?
The cost to deliver our care for the children and families that we support is over £6million a year. Over a five-year average, the kind gifts left in the Wills of our supporters have been enough to fund one fifth of this amount. All gifts, no matter what size, are vital to enable us to continue to care for local terminally ill children and their families.
How can I make sure my Will aligns with my faith and spiritual beliefs?
We understand that you may want to write a Will that is reflective of your personal and spiritual beliefs to make sure the wishes and tenants of your faith are respected. If you have any concerns, you may want to speak with a leader in your faith’s community, or a solicitor if you need advice on UK inheritance law.