A very generous benefactor

News this week, as we returned from half-term, to warm the soul. For the second time, a lady has left a legacy gift of more than a million pounds to our Bursary Fund. The first had no family connection to MGS, so it was extraordinary that, from her home on the Fylde Coast, she chose our charity to support. She had been an early graduate of Manchester University, and saw that our Bursary Appeal, started in 1998, would help bright boys from poor homes to make the best of themselves for their own and society's sake.

This second lady was the widow of an Old Mancunian. I imagine that, before he died and left his estate to her, he asked her in due course to include MGS in her will. This is by no means the first time that this kind of arrangement has been acted out, but the amount is exceptional. I find it very touching that such gifts from women come to this all-boys school in loving memory of their husbands.

This gift will provide at least four additional means-tested bursary places here in perpetuity. Over time, that will be a lot of young men to be grateful to this couple of benefactors of the school. It will also reduce, but sadly not yet to zero, the number of deserving, bright boys we have to turn away each year for lack of bursary funding. For the moment, let's enjoy the positive rather than rue the negative. Thank you, in memory, Mr & Mrs Entwisle.

Have you made your will?

Does this seem a depressing subject to you? Or just a boring one? It's very difficult to get excited about the world of wills and codicils unless you're a lawyer (or maybe a surprise beneficiary), isn't it? And when you say, 'Yes, I have made a will' only to be trumped with, 'Ah, yes, but is it up-to-date?' that's really not fair. I know that I need to have a look at mine, as it's 15 years since I wrote it, and my children were teenagers then.

Here in the Development Office we think about wills quite a lot. This week we received a surprise legacy gift from the estate of a gentleman who died a couple of years ago. It's worth about £12,000 to us, and is a very welcome addition to our Bursary Fund. In the past ten years we must have benefited from about 75 wills, 2 of them worth over a million pounds each. Clearly the donors believed in the value of giving clever boys a chance, with the support of a great secondary education, and we will look after their money well as we build an endowment fund to last for ever. And the donors' names will live for ever on our honours boards. By using the investment income from the fund we can currently provide about 240 means-tested bursaries - a good number, but not enough to satisfy demand. One day we hope to be able to afford a needs-blind entry system.

So if you are looking at making or revising a will, please consider including MGS as one of the charities you choose. All bequests to charities escape inheritance tax. Click here for further details.