ILM provides a network of support and training to legacy professionals

for charities and not-for-profit organisations across the UK

Offering specialist training and qualifications, expert advice and a growing support network, the Institute of Legacy Management (ILM) is the membership body for all those working in legacies. Established in 1999, we now represent and support more than 700 individuals, working in over 500 charities, not-for-profit organisations and associated professions.

Across the sector, legacy professionals are responsible for over £3bn of charitable income each year – income that many charitable organisations rely on for their survival. They are proud to do the work they do, they know they are representing a person’s final wishes, and they conduct their work with great skill and compassion.

Ultimately ILM seeks to ensure that every donor’s charitable legacy achieves its greatest potential. In working towards that goal, the Institute partners with a range of organisations and professional bodies to ensure the legal environment supports and promotes charity legacy giving, and to offer members additional support, information and collaboration opportunities.

If you are involved in generating and managing legacies for your organisation, ILM can provide you with the skills, knowledge and support you need to optimise the value of these legacies.

Ever wondered what a Legacy Professional does? Click here to find out … 

We are proud to

  • Act as a crucial network uniting legacy professionals across the UK
  • Provide dedicated training to maintain and improve practices across the profession
  • Work with probate professionals and other service providers to improve and strengthen the legacy management process from start to finish
  • Maintain and deliver information about the legacy management profession to the wider community
  • Help define and share the highest professional standards for legacy management

Our Vision

Our vision is of a world where beneficiaries of wills always receive their fair entitlement in a timely manner

Our Mission

Our mission is to ensure every charity has the the expertise and tools they need to optimise the value of their legacies, and to work collaboratively with any person or organisation that can help make the probate sector function more effectively.

Our Values

Our values inform everything we do. We are:

Ambitious: We want to grow so we can become the organisation our members expect us to be. We want our training programme to be relevant, accessible and to provide members with all the skills they need to optimise legacy income for their charities. We also want to have the skill and resources to campaign for the changes our members need.

Collaborative: We are a small organisation, and we know we need to work with members, charities, corporate partners, and other organisations to achieve our goals. We also want our members and corporate partners to work together to help make our vision a reality.

Knowledgeable: Training will always be at the heart of what we do. We are determined to ensure that our members always have access to all the knowledge and skills they need and that ILM has access to the expertise it needs to pursue our vision and mission.

Kind: We want kindness to be at the heart of what we do. We want everyone in our community to be supportive of each other and to be kind to everyone they deal with inside and outside the charity sector. We never forget that at the heart of what we do are grieving friends and families who have lost a loved one.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (ED&I)

Equality, diversity and inclusion are at the heart of the ILM’s vision, mission and values. We want to provide charities with the expertise and tools they need to optimise the value of their legacies, and to work collaboratively with any person or organisation that can help make the probate sector function more effectively. Working towards this vision is only possible if the ILM is an organisation that is diverse and inclusive of all people and charities, actively encouraging contributions from everyone involved and seeking fairness in representation of our services within the legacy community. Please see our full EDI policy statement and access our online ED&I open survey.

Join us

Click here to find out much more about the benefits of membership and how to join the ILM family.