SAC Legacy Leaflet M2025

Leave a legacy Support your Cathedral for future generations

Letter from the Dean of St Albans Thank you for considering leaving a gift to St Albans Cathedral, the oldest site of continuous Christian worship in Britain. A gift in your will is the most effective way of supporting the life and work of the Cathedral for future generations.

The Cathedral stands over the place where Alban, Britain’s first Christian saint and martyr, was buried after giving his life for his faith over 1700 years ago. It is a major site of pilgrimage and worship to this day welcoming people of all ages, both locals and from all around the world. With over 620,000 visitors and pilgrims every year, we offer world-class cathedral music, as well as awardwinning learning programmes to thousands of children and adults each year.

As a Cathedral we are committed to our vision, ‘Following Christ in Alban’s footsteps’, which underpins all our work. As a result, daily we work to be a place of: Welcome & Compassion Worship & Witness Courage & Justice Leadership & Service To open our doors, it costs the Cathedral £7,000 a day. Unlike many other cathedrals, St Albans does not have significant endowments, and as a charitable organisation we receive no direct funding from Government.

A generous gift in your will will have a lasting legacy for St Albans Cathedral, ensuring we can continue to welcome all those who visit, telling our story of following Christ in Alban’s footsteps, as well as continuing to respond to the challenges of our world. On behalf of the Chapter and community of St Albans Cathedral, thank you for considering this lasting legacy.

The Very Reverend Jo Kelly-Moore Dean of St Albans

Support St Albans Cathedral The story of Alban is a remarkable one. Alban lived in the early third century in the Roman city of Verulamium, just down the hill from where the Cathedral stands today.

One day he gave shelter to a stranger fleeing from persecution. This stranger was a Christian priest, now known as Amphibalus. While sheltering the priest, Alban was inspired by how important faith was to the priest and asked to be taught more about Christianity. It was not long until the Roman authorities caught up with Amphibalus.

However, Alban’s new-found faith would not allow him to let the authorities arrest the priest. Instead, Alban exchanged clothes with Amphibalus and was arrested, allowing the priest to escape. Alban refused to renounce his beliefs and the magistrate ordered that he should receive the punishment intended for the escaped priest. Upon this ruling, Alban was led out of Verulamium and up the hillside where he was beheaded.

Alban is honoured as Britain’s first saint and his grave on this hillside quickly became a place of pilgrimage. This story of an ordinary man, doing an extraordinary thing, has endured and continues to inspire to this day. The Shrine of St Alban was the reason for the Abbey’s foundation and the town that grew up around it.

Help us keep this amazing story alive. The best way to support the Cathedral is through an unrestricted donation in your will. This enables the Cathedral’s Chapter to best direct your money to the area that is most needed at the time your gift is gratefully received.

Why make a will?

There are many good reasons to make a will: peace of mind for you and your family; ensuring there is adequate provision for family and friends; and the knowledge that your wishes will be carried out after you die. You can ensure that what you have goes to the people and causes you care about.

Making a will is also a planned way of continuing your support for charities and other causes, such as the Cathedral, which you have supported during your lifetime.

If you do not have a will, or have one which is out of date, now may be the time to write one. It is not complicated nor expensive to do and it is easy to amend or replace it if your circumstances change.

Why leave a gift in your will?

Your legacy will have a direct and lasting impact on this special place: not only will it sustain the Cathedral today, helping it remain free and accessible for everyone, but it will also lay the foundations for tomorrow.

A gift in your will could also reduce the amount of inheritance tax your family is liable for and is a cost-effective way of donating. This is because legacies to charities are exempt from inheritance tax.

Furthermore, charitable gifts are not only tax-free themselves, but can also reduce the amount of inheritance tax that the rest of your estate will pay. If you give at least 10% of your taxable estate to charity, the inheritance tax rate for the rest of your estate drops from 40% to 36%.

Leave a legacy in your will Making decisions with regard to charitable donations in your will can be complex and emotive. We would strongly advise that if you have any concerns or questions do consult a solicitor and St Albans Cathedral would be happy to help you find someone to speak to if this was the case.

If you already have a will and wish to add a gift to benefit the Cathedral, you can do this by adding a codicil to your will. Frequently there are specific months where wills can be drawn up or changed free of charge. If you would like to be notified when a ‘Free Wills Month’ campaign is taking place, please do contact the Cathedral and we will notify you at the appropriate time.

There are two main ways of leaving a gift in a will: 1. Pecuniary bequest: This is a fixed amount of money. Suggested wording for leaving a pecuniary bequest: I give the sum of £…. pounds (words and figures) to St Albans Cathedral, Sumpter Yard, St Albans, Hertfordshire, AL1 1BY (Registered Charity Number 1207312) to be used for its general charitable purposes and I declare that the receipt of a Director or other proper officer shall be a full and sufficient discharge.

2. Residuary bequest: This involves leaving the remainder of your estate, or a percentage of it, after other gifts, taxes and expenses have been settled.

Suggested wording for leaving a residuary bequest: Subject to the payment of my debts, funeral and testamentary expenses, I give ….% of the residue of my estate to St Albans Cathedral, Sumpter Yard, St Albans, Hertfordshire, AL1 1BY (Registered Charity Number 1207312) to be used for its general charitable purposes and I declare that the receipt of a Director or other proper officer shall be a full and sufficient discharge.

It is also possible to leave gifts of specific items of property. If this is something you are considering please do get in touch with the Cathedral; the contact details can be found on the back of this leaflet.

Contact the Cathedral Making a will is very personal and any information you give will be treated in confidence. It does help the future planning of the Cathedral if we know about future intended legacy gifts and we are grateful for any information shared.

If you have questions about anything you have read in this leaflet, or more generally about leaving a legacy donation, please speak to a member of clergy or contact the Development Office on 01727 890229 or development@stalbanscathedral.org Alternatively, please fill out the form below and return either to the desk at the Welcome Centre or to Cathedral House reception, or post to Development Office, Cathedral House, Sumpter Yard, St Albans, Hertfordshire, AL1 1BY.

Title: Name: Address: Postcode: Telephone: Email: I plan on my legacy being used to support the Cathedral’s future through: - An unrestricted gift, giving the flexibility for the Dean and Chapter of St Albans Cathedral to use my legacy where the need is greatest ☐ - Supporting the building and fabric ☐ - Supporting learning ☐ - Supporting music ☐ I have questions and would like to speak to someone from the Cathedral’s Development Team ☐ I would like to speak to a member of clergy with regard to organising my funeral ☐

Can we help?

If you have any questions, or would like to find out more about leaving a gift in your will to the Cathedral, please speak to a member of clergy or contact the Development Office on 01727 890229 or development@stalbanscathedral.org Thank you.

St Albans Cathedral

Sumpter Yard, St Albans AL1 1BY | 01727 890229 | development@stalbanscathedral.org