Your Legacy, Our Future

By including a gift to the University in your will, you could help us to nurture the people, generate the ideas and make the discoveries which will change the world for the better.

Your student days were perhaps some of the most formative of your life. If you reflect on the years following your graduation, it’s likely that your career, interests and friendships found their origins at Leeds.

If you feel that the University of Leeds has enriched your life, a legacy could be a wonderful way to show your appreciation and support future generations of Leeds students, teachers and researchers.

Leeds was founded upon the generosity of individual benefactors. For more than a century, legacies have helped shape it. The monetary value of these gifts runs into millions but their true value is incalculable: they have enabled talented students to come to Leeds and achieve their potential, pushed forward research that will help people around the world, and enhanced our library and art collections for the benefit and enjoyment of generations to come.

On permanent display in Parkinson Court, a special leather-bound, handwritten book remembers the many alumni, former staff and friends who have left a gift to the University in their Will. The list stretches back to 1878 and new names are added every year. It is a written history of sustained generosity; between them, these thoughtful people have played a central role in the development of the University of Leeds since its foundation. There is also an online version of the book.

Your legacy to Leeds, whatever its size, could leave a lasting mark too – perhaps on your former department, an area of research that is of special interest to you, or a student following in your footsteps.

Whether you choose to support a particular area, or prefer to instruct the University to use your gift where it is most needed at the time, you can be assured that your entire legacy will benefit the chosen purpose – none will be spent on administration. We place great importance on the careful stewardship of gifts, working with family members, Executors and our colleagues within the University to ensure that legacies are spent fittingly and according to donors’ wishes.

How we can help

We always recommend that you visit your solicitor or other professional advisor to draw up or make changes to your Will, but we welcome any contact you wish to make with us and are happy to expand upon the information provided here and in our Remembering Leeds guide to ensure that your legacy fulfils your wishes.

This is especially true if you have in mind a specific purpose or form of commemoration for your gift, such as funding and naming a scholarship in honour of someone important to you.

We want to ensure that we fully understand what you would like to achieve through your legacy, and welcome the opportunity to discuss particular needs and priorities within the University which could benefit from your support.

Find out more

For more information or a confidential discussion about leaving a legacy to Leeds, please contact Caroline Bartholomew, Alumni & Development Team, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, email: c.bartholomew@adm.leeds.ac.uk, phone +44 (0)113 343 2347.

Our Remembering Leeds guide and suggested legacy wording are also available to download.

A legacy to Leeds is an investment in the future. With your support we can ensure that the University remains the vibrant and ambitious community it needs to be in order to attract the next generation of bright and enquiring minds.

Changing lives in a new generation

Your support will have an impact on the future of the University of Leeds

Charitable status and tax benefits (UK)

Information for US Alumni

Which type of legacy?

Information for Solicitors and Executors

Katharine Salmon

Katharine Salmon (French and Italian 1995) looks back to the "sunny day in December" when she first fell in love with Leeds during an open day. She talks about how this was the start of a connection to Leeds, and about why she supports students both now, and in her Will.

Why I have chosen to leave a legacy to Leeds

Filmed during a return visit to the campus from his home in the US, Peter Cheney (Bacteriology and Biochemistry 1969) explains how his time at the University of Leeds was a foundation for his life - and how this led him to support the work of the institution, and to pledge a bequest to the University in his Will.

The enduring impact of legacies

Against a backdrop of old and new footage of the campus, Brotherton Circle member Peter Blackburn (Philosophy and French 1962) and Eleanor Green (Medicine 2018), whose scholarship was funded through a legacy, discuss the impact which legacies have had on successive generations at the University of Leeds.

Leeds was the foundation for my life

Joan Christmas

Joan Christmas studied at the University of Leeds in the 1960s. Here she looks back at her time in the city, how it shaped her future - and talks about why she now chooses to support the students of today.
Music: "Memories" and "Acoustic Breeze" by Bensound

Making a World of Difference

CLICK ON A LINK BELOW TO READ MORE ABOUT THE IMPACT OF LEGACIES TO THE UNIVERSITY OF LEEDS

Dr Moses Batwala – legacy pledger

Sue Heward - legacy pledger

Roy Ludlow - legacy pledger

Granville Schofield – legacy pledger

Campus Old and New

A slide show of images from the tours of campus, during the Brotherton Circle event, held in August 2019.

Richard and Angela Preece

Richard and Angela Preece talk about their time in Leeds, their involvement in the thriving music scene of campus - and why they have now chosen to support the University with a legacy.

[ Music - Happy Rock and Memories by Bensound; Archive rock images - Dave Siviour of Yorkshire Post Newspapers ]

Steve Martin

Steve Martin (Geography 1978) talks about his time studying at Leeds - and about why he has chosen to leave a legacy to the University to support students from less privileged backgrounds. He also discusses why changes to inheritance tax have made leaving a legacy an attractive option for donors.

Hilary Spurrier

(History 1972)

Hilary talks about her time at University – including a memorable partnership with the great Don Revie – and why she now chooses to support the University, both through gifts to support students and through a legacy.

Amy Woodward

(Graphic and Communications Design 2017)

Amy talks about the scholarship she has received to study at Leeds following a legacy left to the University by a former student.

Behind the scenes at the M&S Archive

Members of the Brotherton Circle, our exclusive group for those who have pledged a legacy to the University of Leeds, gather for a special social event behind the scenes at the M&S Archive - a unique collection from the history of the iconic British retailer, held here on campus.

Tea and Treasures

Members of the Brotherton Circle gather for a special social event, where they were shown some of the amazing treasures of the University's Brotherton Collection.

David Budworth

(Physics and Astronomy 1955)

David arrived at University during the great fog of 1952. Here he recalls his time as a student at Leeds, where he was to stay for nine years as an undergraduate and postgraduate student – and talks about the decision made with his late wife Kathleen, to leave their collection of paintings to the University gallery.