“Doing philosophy equips people with life skills – how to listen to others, how to make a case, how to change one’s perspective, how to reason, how to defend one’s view, how to acknowledge what one does not know or understand. Philosophy teaches skills integral to cultivating social values and conduct. It changes people’s minds.”
Professor Lucy O’Brien, Chair, The Royal Institute of
When you choose to leave a gift to the Royal Institute of Philosophy, you leave the gift to change minds. Your gift will enable us to continue our 100 year mission to share philosophical thinking as widely as possible.
Donations from legacies and bequests have a huge impact on the work we do, and we are grateful for the generosity of our donors. Whatever the size of your gift, it will make an important and lasting contribution to our work and offer a valuable difference for future generations
This brochure will help you understand the practicalities of leaving a gift to the Royal Institute of Philosophy. It includes useful information about the different types of gifts that you can give and how they might be used.
The Royal Institute of Philosophy was founded a hundred years ago ‘to advance the education of the public in the subject of philosophy’. That remains our mission today. But our conception of ‘the public’ has broadened beyond the small highly educated Bloomsbury audiences of the 1920s to include diverse online audiences, young people at risk, prisoners and school students.
Among today’s most pressing questions it’s hard to think of one that doesn’t have a philosophical dimension. How do we share the burdens of addressing the climate crisis equitably? Where are the ethics in artificial intelligence? How do we balance rights to freedom of expression against the need to protect the vulnerble – especially perhaps online? How does social media affect our relation to ourselves and others? People need philosophy now as never before. The Royal Institute’s mission is to provide it.
The Royal Institute of Philosophy is the UK’s largest independent charitable foundation devoted to sharing philosophical thinking as widely as possible and in this centenary year we wish to begin a legacy programme that will bring these questions and more to the curious of every age and background for generations to come.
Philosophy can change the way people think and interact with the world, and by leaving a gift in your Will, you can help these impacts resonate for many years to come.
If you have a particular area of interest that you would like to support, or any specific requests relating to the gift you would like to leave, please contact us by leaving a message at 02076644851 or emailing support@royalinstitutephilosophy.org
You may wish to leave your gift to a long term project or put it to work immediately through our activities and programmes. We will be happy to talk through what those are with you and how best we can ensure your gift makes the greatest impact in the areas important to you.
Any suggested wording in this document does not provide legal advice but is given to the best of our understanding. It is not offered as a definitive legal interpretation and it is always advisable to seek independent legal advice – to make sure your wishes are captured and can be carried out in accordance with your intentions. If you live outside the UK, we recommend that you seek both legal and financial advice, to ensure that it is possible to include the Royal Institute of Philosophy in your Will.
To leave a gift in your Will, you may need to either create a new Will, or add a Codicil to your present Will. A Codicil is a legal document, which adds to or changes an existing Will.
The most common types of gift you may wish to consider making in your Will are listed below.
A pecuniary legacy is a gift of a fixed, specific sum of money, The value of this type of legacy will decrease over time, however, it is possible to protect it from inflation by linking it to an inflation index.
A specific legacy are gifts-in-kind, such as property, jewellery, works of art, collections of books or papers, intellectual property rights, property, land, stocks, shares and even share options.
This is a gift of all, or a share of your estate (including your money, property and personal possessions) which you own as at the date of your death following the distribution of any pecuniary, or specific gifts and payment of any debts and expenses.
This is either a specific or pecuniary gift, or a residuary gift, that is left to another beneficiary in the first instance, but will revert to the Royal I nstitute of Philosophy absolutely, usually after the initial beneficiary has passed away. This is a very common type of gift that couples or parents often consider, where a gift is set up as a Will Trust. The interest goes to the surviving spouse (or children) for their lifetime, and the Royal Institute of Philosophy will benefit from the gift on the spouse’s (or child’s) death. Occasionally, there can be second intermediary beneficiaries (children or grandchildren), too.
A gift dependent on the occurrence of an event which may or may not happen. For instance, a legacy which only applies if other beneficiaries named in the Will die before the person who made the Will.
To ensure that the Royal Institute of Philosophy is able to legally accept your gift, and to follow your wishes precisely, you will need to use clear wording in your Will.
On the following pages, you will find some examples of phrasing that you can use or share with your Will writer.
We ask that gifts to support our general charitable purposes are donated to: The Royal Institute of Philosophy of 7 Bell Yard, London, WC2A 7JR, UK (Registered Charity Number 313834)
‘I give free of tax to The Royal Institute of Philosophy of 7 Bell Yard, London, WC2A 7JR, UK (Registered Charity Number 313834) the sum of [enter currency and amount] for its general purposes and I declare that the receipt of the Chief Executive Officer for the time being, or other duly authorised officer of The Royal Institute of Philosophy shall be a full and sufficient discharge to my Executor(s).’
‘I give free of tax to The Royal Institute of Philosophy of 7 Bell Yard, London, WC2A 7JR, UK (Registered Charity Number 313834) the sum of money produced by dividing the sum of [enter currency and amount] by the index figure in the Index of Retail Prices (‘the Index’) for the month in which this Will is executed and (having made allowance for any re-basing of the Index which may have occurred in the meantime) multiplying it by the index figure in the Index for the month in which my death occurs, for its general purposes and I declare that the receipt of the Chief Executive Officer for the time being or other duly authorised officer of The Royal Institute of Philosophy shall be a full and sufficient discharge to my Executor(s).’
‘I give to The Royal Institute of Philosophy of 7 Bell Yard, London, WC2A 7JR, UK (Registered Charity Number 313834) free of tax and other fiscal impositions and costs of transfer, my [item description] for its general purposes and I declare that the receipt of the Chief Executive Officer for the time being or other duly authorised officer of The Royal Institute of Philosophy shall be a full and sufficient discharge to my Executor(s).
‘I give to The Royal Institute of Philosophy of 7 Bell Yard, London, WC2A 7JR, UK (Registered Charity Number 313834) free of tax and other fiscal impositions and costs of transfer all my interest in my property known as [item description] for its general purposes and I declare that the receipt of the Chief Executive Officer for the time being or other duly authorised officer of The Royal Institute of Philosophy shall be a full and sufficient discharge to my Executor(s).
‘I give [the whole, or state percentage] of the residue of my Estate to The Royal Institute of Philosophy of 7 Bell Yard, London, WC2A 7JR, UK (Registered Charity Number 313834) for its general purposes and I declare that the receipt of the Chief Executive Officer for the time being, or other duly authorised officer of The Royal Institute of Philosophy shall be a full and sufficient discharge to my Executor(s).’
Finally, you may wish to request donations be made to The Royal Institute of Philosophy in lieu of floral tributes. If this is clearly stated in your Will, your Executors can ensure that your wishes are made known using the following suggested wording:
‘I direct my Executor to ensure that in lieu of flowers at my funeral, donations are made to The Royal Institute of Philosophy of 7 Bell Yard, London, WC2A 7JR, UK (Registered Charity Number 313834).
