Leading Berkshire Law Firm Raises Money to Help Families Protect Themselves Against Covid-19

A law firm has raised enough money to provide help for families to protect themselves from coronavirus and other diseases around the world and in the UK after writing wills for people living in Maidenhead.

Colemans Solicitors in Maidenhead raised £7,640 after taking part in Will Aid, a national campaign which invites solicitors to give up a portion of their time in the month of November to write wills in exchange for a voluntary donation to charity.

That money is then split between nine organisations – one of which is Save the Children.

Jon Jacques from Save the Children said the sum was enough to provide resource packs for 7,500 families in the UK containing child-friendly information on COVID-19, learning materials and tips to manage children’s wellbeing during this difficult time.

He said: “Like many charities, coronavirus has had a significant impact on our income and fundraising activities, so we are hugely grateful for initiatives like Will Aid.

“This kind of money could also pay for ‘school in a bag’ kits for 500 children in Yemen to make sure they don’t miss out on their education.

“Save the Children believes every child deserves a future and, in the UK, in Yemen and around the world, we work every day to give children a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm.

“We deliver lasting results for millions of children, including those hardest to reach but in order to do this effectively we need money.

“That is why we are incredibly grateful to firms like Colemans Solicitors who take part in Will Aid.

“By giving up their time, they have managed to raise a significant sum and by demonstrating the type of project that this money could fund, we hope they can see what a tangible difference their efforts can make.”

Sophie Hamilton from Colemans Solicitors said the team had written more than 80 wills during November to raise £7,640.

This is the sixth year the firm has taken part in the month-long fundraiser and their total raised to date is £13,603.

Sophie Hamilton from the firm said: “Making a will with a professional solicitor is one of the most important pieces of paperwork a person can complete and yet millions of people put it off.

Coronavirus has also highlighted to many, the importance of protecting your loved ones in the event that the worst were to happen. The demand for Will Aid’s services increases year on year and we are anticipating this year’s demand to be the highest yet. In previous years, we have been unable to fulfil the demand, which is why we need your help. We need more solicitors to sign up and donate their time to Will Aid.

“There has been a huge demand for will-writing in the last few months as a result and Will Aid therefore is a great opportunity for people to get their affairs in order and help charities that have suffered a lot in this period of lockdown.

“We know that the donations we raise reach some of the most vulnerable individuals world-wide, changing lives for the better. So, it really is win-win!”

Will Aid raises money for charities: ActionAid, British Red Cross, Christian Aid, NSPCC, Save The Children, Sightsavers, Age UK, SCIAF (Scotland) and Trocaire (Northern Ireland).

Peter de Vena Franks, campaign director, said: “Will Aid has made an amazing contribution to the work of these nine participating charities since 1988.

“Thanks to the commitment of local solicitors that took part in this year’s Will Aid, many people both in the UK and abroad will receive life-changing support and local people who used the scheme have the peace of mind that having a professionally drawn up will brings.

“I would like to offer my heartfelt thanks to Colemans Solicitors for their incredible efforts this year.”

Will Aid will run again in November 2020. Find out more by visiting www.willaid.org.uk

For more information, photographs, quotes or localised statistics please contact the Will Aid press team on pr@willaid.org.uk or call 01473 276127

Categorised in: Latest news, Press releases, Uncategorised

This post was written by Colemans Solicitors LLP