Legacy giving — leaving a gift to charity in your will — is the single largest source of voluntary income for UK charities and accounts for roughly a third of all charitable giving in the country. For animal charities in particular it is often the difference between continuing and closing.
WARN is World Animal Rescue Network CIC (Company number 17298990), a registered Community Interest Company — not a registered charity. A gift to WARN in your will would not qualify for the inheritance-tax exemption described below — if inheritance-tax efficiency is your main goal, a registered animal charity is the right home for that part of your legacy. We are writing this guide because we want supporters who plan to remember us in their wills to understand how legacy giving works.
The three types of legacy gift
- Pecuniary legacy. A fixed sum of money. Easy to plan but loses value to inflation over time.
- Specific legacy. A named asset — a property, a vehicle, an item of value.
- Residuary legacy. A percentage of whatever remains in your estate after other gifts, debts and tax. Inflation-proof and the most common form.
The inheritance-tax piece
Gifts to UK-registered charities are exempt from inheritance tax. If you leave 10% or more of your net estate to charity, the rate of inheritance tax on the rest of your estate falls from 40% to 36% — a real and underused benefit.
What you need from the charity
- Registered charity name (legal name, not trading name).
- Registered charity number.
- Registered office address.
- A standard wording the charity itself recommends.
WARN is a CIC rather than a registered charity, so we do not have a charity number — our registered company name is World Animal Rescue Network CIC, company number 17298990, registered office 71-75 Shelton Street, London, England, WC2H 9JQ. Your solicitor should use the exact legal name and company number in any will clause.
Use a solicitor
DIY wills are a common source of family disputes and a regular cause of intended legacies failing in probate. Use a STEP-qualified solicitor or a Will Aid / Free Wills Month month if cost is a barrier.
What WARN promises
Our promise on legacy gifts is the same as our promise on every other gift: full annual accounting, no hidden administration charges, and clear allocation of the funds to the rescue programmes the donor named. A residuary legacy gift to WARN funds frontline rescue work — not corporate overheads.
We need your support to make this happen
World Animal Rescue Network is at the launch stage of this work. We do not yet have rescue numbers to share — and that is exactly why your support matters now. Every donation helps us put trained teams on the ground, secure veterinary supplies and equipment, and reach the first animals before they are lost.
Donate today to fund our first deployments, or sponsor an animal to back a specific species through rehabilitation. You can also join the network as a volunteer, fundraiser, or monthly supporter.
When is WARN the wrong legacy?
If inheritance-tax relief is the point of the gift, a UK registered charity is the right door. WARN is a CIC. Gifts to us do not qualify for the charity exemption or the 10% estate-rate reduction.
WARN is World Animal Rescue Network CIC (Company number 17298990), a registered Community Interest Company — not a registered charity. The legacy page is the product page with solicitor wording. This newsroom piece explains the mechanics so you do not mix us up with a Charity Commission number.
If your estate is contested, overseas, or tied up in trusts, this page is not legal advice. Use a STEP-qualified solicitor. Will Aid and Free Wills Month exist when cost is the barrier.
What should the clause actually say?
Name the legal entity, the company number, and whether the gift is residuary, pecuniary or specific. Residuary percentages hold their value; fixed sums do not.
Suggested wording (your solicitor must adapt it): "I give [X% of my residuary estate / the sum of £X] to World Animal Rescue Network CIC (Company number 17298990), a Community Interest Company registered in England and Wales, to be applied for the benefit of its community purposes."
Tell us only if you want to. A gift is valid if we never hear from you in your lifetime. Telling us means we can answer questions while you can still ask them, and it does not lock the will.
You can dedicate a legacy in memory of a person or a pet. You can also add a tribute now at /in-memory/ without waiting for probate.
Where do animal-charity wills go wrong?
The failure mode is usually the document, not the intention.
- Wrong legal name. Trading names collide. The company number is what probate needs. Do not write “WARN the charity”.
- DIY wills. Unwitnessed or ambiguous clauses fail. A cheap online will can be enough for a simple estate; it is not enough for a fight.
- Tax assumptions. The 40% to 36% inheritance-tax cut requires gifts to qualifying charities. WARN does not qualify. Your solicitor should model the estate with that in mind.
- Layered codicils. Many small add-ons create the ambiguity that gets challenged. Larger changes belong in a new will.
What if you want to give while you are alive?
A will costs nothing today. A monthly gift funds clinics this year. You can do both.
Product page: /legacy/. Rescue-guide pair: leave a gift in your will. Living gifts: /donate/ or sponsor a dog.
WARN is a registered UK Community Interest Company (Company no. 17298990) and is not a charity, so it cannot claim Gift Aid. The donation case is transparent partner-led welfare where support reaches practical field needs.
