Leaving a Legacy
Leaving a gift in your will to South Yorkshire’s Community Foundation helps to creates positive long-lasting difference in your community for generations to come.
Ensuring your legacy
As a charity, we have worked in South Yorkshire for over 30 years and have supported thousands of essential community projects and charities with grant funding in South Yorkshire. Which means, we are best placed to ensure your gift helps those who need it most.
As our professional service to you, your family and your professional advisors, we will work with you and your solicitor or professional advisor to support you while you make a choice that fits your giving wishes.
Types of Legacy
- Pecuniary Legacy – is a fixed amount specified in your will. It is free of tax, which adds considerably to the value of your gift.
- A Residuary Legacy – is the remaining value of your estate after all other bequests to family and friends have been made.
- A Reversionary Legacy – allows family and friends to benefit from your estate during their lifetime and then for the balance of the estate to pass to the Community Foundation.
- Specific – a particular item, such as shares, property or valuables, left to the Foundation will be free of inheritance tax
After selling Price Transport in 2015 I wanted to make a charitable contribution to the region. South Yorkshire’s Community Foundation have enabled me to do just that.
David Price
Tax effective giving
Gifts can be large or small, a percentage of your Estate or a fixed sum gift. Through SYCF, gifts can either be taken off the value of your Estate before inheritance Tax is calculated, or else reduce your inheritance Tax rate from 40% to 36% on some assets, if more than 10% of your Estate is left to charity.
Creating a Personal Fund or a Charity?
As an alternative to a client setting up their own charity, working with SYCF and our professional advisors to set up a personal fund provides a more cost and time effective means of achieving a clients charitable aims and objectives.
A comparison between a Personal Fund with SYCF and a Charitable Trust:
| Start Up | SYCF Fund | Charitable Trust |
| Procedure | Simple agreement | Must apply to Charity Commission and register. Must appoint a Board of Trustees |
| Costs | 0-5% entry fee | Possible legal fees for registration |
| Timeframe | Immediate | May take weeks/months |
| Minimum contribution | £25k for named Personal Funds which can be built up over a period of time | There is no minimum requirement |
| Tax status | Covered under SYCF's charity status | Covered by registration with the Charity Commission |
| Minimum contribution | £25k for named Personal Funds which can be built up over a period of time | There is no minimum requirement |
| Tax status | Covered under SYCF's charity status | Covered by registration with the Charity Commission |
| Reporting to authorities | SYCF takes care of reporting to the Charity Commission, particularly the Annual Reports and Accounts | The donor/trustees must maintain all financial records, prepare accounts and submit to the Charity Commission |
| Donor control | Trustees of SYCF take on the legal and fiscal responsibility for the donor's fund, while the donor recommends grants to the organisations vetted by SYCF | Donor appoints Board of Trustees to control all aspects of grant-making and investment |
| Philanthropy advice | SYCF provides full service added to donors | Donor/trustees responsible for own giving strategy |
| Grant-making service: expertise, administration, follow up | Professional staff available to help identify and assess grantees, provide input on community needs and ensure follow up with the recipients and reports back to the donor | Donor responsible for own grant-making process, administration and overseeing |
| Privacy | SYCF can maintain the anonymity of any donor | The Charitable Trust must keep public records |
| Profile | SYCF can help the donor as much or as little as they want | Responsible for own profile |
| Geography | SYCF operates in South Yorkshire but partner with other UK Community Foundations on delivery of national or regional initiatives | Donor/trustees determine their geographic reach |
| Reach | SYCF connects donors to a variety of groups and issues in the community and connects like minded donors | Must find own networks and information sources |
Transfer a Trust
SYCF can take over trusts that have become dormant or ineffective or where trustees wish to retire. We provide guidance to the existing trustees on the correct process required by the Charity Commission for the transfer of funds.
Further Information
We understand that conversations conserving leaving a legacy can be very difficult. For further information regarding leaving a legacy please contact us using the information below.
Meet Michelle
Michelle supports our Strategic Plan through philanthropy. This includes the development of long-term strategic relationships to secure and distribute income against agreed targets. She is also responsible for of our Fund Development Strategy and SYCF's Grant Strategy.
Her working days are Monday to Friday.
Michelle Dickinson
Head of Philanthropy and Programmes
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