Only if you have minor children (under the age of 18 years) will you need to appoint Guardians. It may be helpful to make at least one Guardian a joint Executor, they do have a right to money from your estate to help towards the cost of bringing up your children.

If you wish to restrict the amount to which they are entitled, it may be wise to leave the money in Trust. One should always remember though that Trusts can be expensive to administer, particularly over a long period.

If you have Disabled children who are likely to require specialist care either at home or in the care of the Local Authority, a Trust will be required to ensure that adequate funds are available for their future. There are several Trust Companies run by charities, which can help. We can give you individual advice in these circumstances.

EXAMPLE:

Mr & Mrs Newman have a son Peter  aged nine. They appointed George and his wife Mary as Guardians. Mary is great with children and seemed a natural choice. They are also only a couple of years younger. They could have chosen either sets of parents but did not wish to create a burden on them in their mature years.

Mr & Mrs Newman are very happy with their choice of Guardians and now feel they are really getting on with completing their Wills. ”We did not realise how easy it is”.