Making a Gift in your Will
Your Gift can have a lasting impact on the future of Blackfriars
Quick Links:
- Why are Gifts in Wills important?
- How do I support specific parts of Blackfriars?
- What do I need to include in my Will?
The Importance of Gifts in Wills
Everybody wants to support those good causes that matter to them, but usually our ability to do this is limited by our day-to-day finances. Leaving a gift in your Will can however be an easier and more impactful way to help those charities that matter to you.
The money that people leave to the Dominican Friars through legacies is a very important means of support for us.
- Legacy gifts typically make up 10% of our charity’s annual income.
- Many of our most urgent needs over the years have been resolved through generous bequests.
- In particular, they have helped with projects to maintain and renew our churches and other buildings, which typically account for 30% of our annual expenditure.
Legacies can be a way for the donor to make a positive and lasting impact on the friars’ mission. They can on occasion also serve to memorialise the donor, for example by establishing a scholarship or teaching post in their name, or remembering them on a plaque when they have paid for a significant piece of building work.
Could you remember Blackfriars in your Will?
When providing for the needs of family and friends in your Will, do please also consider making a bequest to Blackfriars.
Legacies make a huge difference. Making a gift through your Will enables us to advance our mission, and larger legacies can help us to make big steps forward that otherwise might take years to accomplish.
The Friars remember all their benefactors every day in their prayers.
Practical Details about Making a Will
1. Tax benefits of giving to charity
- Direct gifts made in your Will to named UK charities are fully tax-exempt.
- Such gifts can also help reduce the Inheritance Tax rate on the rest of your estate from 40% to 36%. This reduces the burden of tax on your next of kin.
Inheritance tax (IHT) is currently (2026) payable on estates valued at £325,000 or over, with tax set at 40% on the amount over this threshold; however, if you donate 10% or more of your net estate to one or more named UK registered charities (such as the Dominican Friars), then the rate of inheritance tax is reduced to 36% on non-exempt gifts. Recent changes to IHT rules mean that more estates are now likely to face tax, so charitable giving may be a way for you to reduce the tax liability.
IMPORTANT:
- You should always seek the advice of your solicitors when drafting a clause designed to benefit from this reduction in the rate of tax.
- Please note, as of 2026, it is advisable to specify named UK charities in your Will; if charitable giving is left to the discretion of your executors, or made to a discretionary trust, then this may not qualify for the reduction in IHT.
2. Who to talk to about making your Will
Making a Will is easy. All you have to do is consider how you wish to divide up your property, and make sure these wishes are clearly communicated. You can also use your Will to give clear instructions about your funeral.
It is advisable to find a solicitor to help you to draft it. The same is true if you have made your Will already, but want to revise it because your circumstances have changed. Blackfriars is also now able to offer access to a Free Will-Writing Service.
The Dominican Friars can also provide information to your solicitors should they need it – you can contact Richard at our central offices on 01865 610208 (email development@english.op.org), and we will be pleased to assist you.
3. Consider the nature and impact of your legacy gift
What could be achieved with a Gift in my Will?
If you are planning to leave a gift to the our charity, you might wish to consider what different types of gifts could achieve.
- An unrestricted gift is one made for the general use of the charity: the Dominicans will decide where the gift can best be used to advance its mission.
- A restricted gift is one directed to a particular branch (a priory or house) or a particular fund held by the charity. If you wish to direct your giving towards Blackfriars, please ensure that you specify either ‘Blackfriars Hall’, ‘Blackfriars Priory Oxford’ or ‘Blackfriars Studium’ according to what you wish to support. See below for information on where you could focus your gift.
The size of your gift will also affect its impact:
- Small gifts of up to £5,000 will typically be used to assist with normal expenditures made by the charity in pursuit of its mission.
- Larger gifts could assist with bigger needs. They might allow the completion of a building project, or setting up a scholarship, or they could be laid down in our capital funds to provide annual income for our charity.
Restricted Gifts: Focussed impact for your Legacy Gift
If you would like your Will to benefit a specific aspect of Blackfriars, please be sure to state this in your Will. You may find it helpful to talk to the Prior, the Regent or the Development Office for guidance on the particular things that could be supported by a legacy.
- Blackfriars Priory, Oxford: the community of friars
- Blackfriars Studium: funding those who teach in our ‘seminary’
- Blackfriars Hall: our Private Hall within Oxford University. You can also specify support for one of our research centres.
4. Ways to give through your Will
In making a bequest, you have a choice of three ways to give:
- A percentage of your estate – this means a portion or the whole of what is left once debts and funeral expenses have been paid, and other bequests made.
- A fixed amount – a specific sum of money
- Property or goods – a building you own, or other things such as stocks and shares, or pieces of jewellery.
In drawing up your Will, your solicitor will need to be given the exact details for each of these three ways.
5. Details to Include in Your Will
If you wish to leave something to Blackfriars, please note these details to include in your Will.
Blackfriars is part of the following charity:
Charity name:
The English Province of the Order of Preachers
Charity registration numbers:
231192 (England and Wales);
SC039062 (Scotland).
Registered address:
Blackfriars, St Giles, OXFORD OX1 3LY.
Contact the Development Office
6. Optional: Telling us your intentions
As we plan for the future, it would help if you let us know if you intend to leave something to Blackfriars in your Will.
- You can email us via our Development Office and we will record your intention on our records. (This is entirely optional and furthermore creates no obligation on your part to make a bequest.)