LEAVING A GIFT
SUPPORT US —- — —- THE 1560 SOCIETY

REMEMBERING THE SCHOOL IN YOUR WILL

Great schools like Solihull are built on the shoulders of the generations that came before. By leaving a gift in your will, you add to Solihull’s rich heritage and ensure its future prosperity. It allows you to enrich the lives of future generations of Silhillians and take your place among the school’s benefactors. A legacy is one of the simplest and most flexible ways of making a gift and allows you to support the school in a way you might not have been able to during your lifetime. All legacies left to the school by generous donors make a significant difference to the success and development of Solihull, whether you choose to leave a gift for bursaries or a department.

Benefactors to the school are acknowledged and I hope you will wish to add your name to the list and emulate your predecessors in helping maintain Solihull’s proud tradition of excellence and opportunity for all.

CHARLES FILLINGHAM, Executive Headmaster

THE 1560 SOCIETY

Old Silhillians, Saint Martin’s Old Girls and friends of the school who make the Development Office aware of their intention to leave a legacy gift to Solihull School automatically become members of The 1560 Society.

We are delighted that Mark Hopton (Shenstone 1968-1973), former Chairman of Governors, has kindly agreed to become its first president.

We appreciate that making a will is a sensitive and deeply personal matter, but should you decide to leave a gift to the school, we would love to know so we can thank you and recognise your support in your lifetime.

Members of The 1560 Society and their partners will be invited to an annual lunch with the Headmaster at his home to keep them up to date with the school’s progress and future plans. It is a lovely occasion for meeting up with other members of the Solihull community, for us to thank you in person and to ensure that we honour your intentions in leaving a bequest.

MARK HOPTON — PRESIDENT OF THE 1650 SOCIETY
(SHENSTONE 1968-1973)

I am truly delighted to have been invited to lead The 1560 Society. Nelson Mandela once said, Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world. Drawing upon this vision and my privileged insights into Solihull School’s 450-plus year journey, I am particularly proud of the growth in bursary provision which today enables the transformation of the lives of so many young people who would not otherwise have access to Solihull’s first class offering.

Many amongst the Solihull community have made, and will no doubt continue to make, generous lifetime gifts. However, for those of you with the means to do so, many may have already considered, or may wish to consider, the option of leaving a legacy in your will. As I myself have discovered, there are also worthwhile potential tax benefits in this form of charitable giving. George Hill’s remarkable vision did so much to lay the foundations of Solihull’s endowment provision. Like him, the current generation too has the opportunity through its collective efforts to make legacy provision to contribute meaningfully to the school’s long-term future and the education of tomorrow’s generation of Silhillians.

AKIRHA SIMPSON
SIHILLIAN FUND BURSARY RECIPIENT 2019-2021

Receiving a Silhillian Fund Bursary removed obstacles and provided me with experiences that I could never have dreamt of before I came here. Thanks to the help, encouragement and dedicated teaching I received at Solihull, I am now studying Law at Durham University. My ambition is to become a barrister and, as soon as I can, I will become a donor to The Silhillian Fund.

I want to pass on my good fortune to those who come after me. If you value your experience here, can there be a better gift than to help someone else attain the same opportunities, whatever their background?

To those who have already given, thank you: you’ve changed the course of my life.

.

TYPES OF LEGACY

PECUNIARY

A specific sum of money (or other asset).

RESIDUAL

A specific share of an estate, usually stating a percentage or fraction of the whole.

REVERSIONARY

Providing for loved ones during their lifetime, giving them use of all assets which would only be passed on after their death.

SPECIFIC

Non-cash bequests, such as stocks and shares, works of art or other possessions.

WE SUGGEST YOU MAY WISH TO USE THIS WORDING IN YOUR WILL:

“I give a legacy of £X (or a share of the Residue of my Estate) to the Governors of Solihull School (Registered Charity Number: 1120597) to be invested in the endowment fund for The Silhillian Fund for Bursaries (or please specify if you wish it to be left for the use of the fabric of the school, a specific department or another campaign). I declare that the receipt of the Bursar or other authorised officer for the time being of the School shall be a good and sufficient discharge for my Trustees.”

TAX BENEFITS

The tax benefits of a legacy gift to the school are considerable. These gifts can be made free from Inheritance Tax and Capital Gains Tax.

Solihull School is a registered charity (No.1120597), so any gift to the school would be tax-free and could reduce the total tax burden levied on your estate to your family.

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%.

This means:

Every £100 you give to charity reduces your estate by only £24 after tax.
On an estate valued at £1 million the beneficiaries receive only £16,200 less when a £67,500 gift is left to charity than if no charitable gift is made.

A GIFT FOR THE FUTURE

PROF ALBIN COFONE, a regular visitor and friend of the school, has also decided to leave a legacy. The basis of this gift is an acknowledgement of how grateful I am for having found Solihull School at a rather late stage in my academic career.

Its core values of scholarship, self-reflection, generosity of spirit, tradition and service have allowed me to be a part of something greater than myself.

When I stand in front of a class at Solihull, I feel as if I am standing in front of not just the future of England, but of the world. It is a feeling imbued with hope and the greatest optimism, together with a comforting sense that the young minds of Solihull School will be enlightened stewards of the earth.

I deeply believe a Solihull education makes for a better planet and provides for an uplift of the human spirit. It is a privilege and an honour to play even a small part in this endeavour.

PAUL HARDMAN
(JAGO 1971-1978)

Not only did I receive an excellent academic education at Solihull, but I had the opportunity, encouragement and support to participate in a host of extra-curricular activities and spend my formative years in an environment that engendered self-confidence and fostered a belief in high standards in all aspects of life. I formed lifelong friendships with fellow pupils and learned a great deal that later helped me, not just in my career, but with life in general. This isn’t simply a nostalgic look back into the past through a rose-coloured lens, but a pragmatic assessment of the benefits I have enjoyed as a consequence of my time at the school. None of this would have been possible were it not for the full scholarship I received from the local authority. It seems only right, therefore, to hand on my good fortune to the next generation of Silhillians by leaving a gift in my will to The Silhillian Fund for Bursaries, allowing a young person without the necessary means to be given the same transformational opportunity as I received.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO DISCUSS LEAVING A LEGACY TO SOLIHULL, PLEASE CONTACT:

Dev-os@solsch.org.uk

+44 (0) 121 703 2898