The British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) exists to defend and extend women’s reproductive choices. We were established in 1968, shortly after the Abortion Act came into force, to provide a not-for-profit service that the NHS at the time either could not, or would not, provide. Today we are the UK’s leading abortion provider, caring for more than 100,000 women every year.
Our doctors, nurses and midwives work hard every day to ensure women faced with an unplanned pregnancy – or a pregnancy they cannot continue – receive the support they need. At the same time, we campaign vigorously to ensure the law and policy respects women’s reproductive rights. While the 1967 Act was groundbreaking for its time, today we are still fighting for the decriminalisation of abortion so no woman can face prison for ending a pregnancy.
Remembering BPAS in your will can help us continue that fight to ensure our daughters, granddaughters, great-grandaughters are able to make their own choices in pregnancy. While decriminalisation may be well within our reach, we know that we can never be complacent, that rights can be rolled back as we have seen elsewhere, and that we will need to be ever vigilant against those who oppose women’s choice.
Remembering BPAS in your will can also ensure we are able to defend women’s health and lives whenever they are compromised by their capacity for pregnancy, and support women’s decisions around childbearing. As well as campaigning for and providing abortion, we work to improve the circumstances in which women make their reproductive choices, so women can continue wanted pregnancies as well as end those they cannot continue. , Supporting BPAS means supporting an organisation which will put women’s needs first and foremost, now and always.
This is why leaving a legacy to BPAS is so important and we hope you will choose to do so.
If you are interested in leaving a legacy to BPAS and want some more information, please contact us at legacies@bpas.org or call 07425913153.
Including BPAS in your will is really straightforward and one of the most important things you can do to support reproductive rights in the UK. Any gift, large or small makes our cause stronger and we would be very grateful.
It is crucial to seek professional advice from a solicitor or will writer when making or changing a will. They can ensure it is correctly written in a way that respects your intentions, and protects the rights of your family and other people you want to support through it. They can also advise on areas such as inheritance tax and how to choose an executor.
Once you have provided for your loved ones you can include BPAS in the following ways:
A percentage of your estate (known as a residuary gifts) - residuary gifts are an excellent way of supporting your favourite causes in the way you intend. Often a will is written many years before death and in that time the value of an estate can go up and down dramatically. By expressing your gift as a percentage of your estate you ensure it keeps the relative value you intended.
A fixed amount (known as a pecuniary gift) - a pecuniary gift would specify a fixed amount of money – eg £1500 that you intended BPAS to get on your death.
Your solicitor can provide wording to ensure your intentions are properly reflected.
BPAS should be included using our registered address, legal name and registered charity number. This helps your executor ensure that your money is sent to BPAS as you intended. The details are as follows:
British Pregnancy Advisory Service – Registered Charity 289145
Orion House, 2 Athena Drive, Tachbrook Park, Leamington Spa, CV34 6RQ
We would hope that there is a significant passage of time between you making your will and any gift coming to us. BPAS is confident we will be providing services to women and campaigning on reproductive choice issues for decades to come. However the exact nature of these campaigns and our priorities are likely to change over time and if you specify how we use any gift, it may be impossible for us to honour that request and we would be unable to take your money and reflect your intentions.
The contents of your will are personal and you are under no obligation to reveal them to anyone. However, we recommend that you tell your partner, children or grand children about the charitable bequests you intend to make.
We would also love it if you were to tell us. Most importantly it gives us the opportunity to thank you properly for what is a hugely generous thing to do, but knowing how many legacies we can expect to receive in future years also helps with our planning.
If you would like to know more about leaving a legacy to BPAS, please contact legacies@bpas.org or call 07425913153. However, we cannot recommend specific solicitors, will writers or offer legal advice.
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