Leave a legacy
Leaving a legacy to Hertford is a straightforward way to make a meaningful contribution to the next generation of students to pass through our gates, without compromising your current finances.
There are different types of legacy gifts that allow you to put your family first while still making a provision for Hertford and other causes close to your heart. You may decide to leave a fixed sum to the college, a percentage of your estate, or the residue that remains when you have provided for your loved ones.
Hertford is a registered charity, and all bequests to charity are exempt from inheritance tax. Furthermore, if you leave 10% or more of your estate to charity, the tax payable on the remainder of your estate reduces from 40% to 36%.
If you are planning on remembering Hertford in your will, please let us know by getting in touch on development.office@hertford.ox.ac.uk or by completing the legacy pledge form.
Geoffrey and Mary Warnock Society
The Geoffrey Warnock Society was created in 1999 to recognise the generosity of our alumni and friends who have included Hertford in their will. In 2023, on the 100th anniversary of Geoffrey’s birth, the name of the society was changed to ‘The Geoffrey and Mary Warnock Society’ to recognise the impact both Geoffrey and Mary Warnock had on Hertford as a couple, as well as to highlight the fact that leaving a legacy may not be an individual decision.
Geoffrey Warnock was the Principal of Hertford College for seventeen years; he was also elected Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford in 1981. Warnock left a legacy to the college, and his and Mary’s commitment and dedication to Hertford’s future is the reason the legacy society has been named in their memory.
All alumni and friends of the college who choose to leave a legacy to Hertford are invited to become members of the Geoffrey and Mary Warnock Society, and receive a stag pin to mark their generosity.
Each year we organise an event for our Warnock Society members, often an afternoon together with friends. Members are also invited to events thanking donors.
Legacy spotlight
There’s no doubt that an Oxford education can open doors, both professionally and socially. But being part of a college community is about so much more than just recognition in the outside world. It is a unique experience, with everlasting memories and friends. It nurtures team work, sociability, a work ethic, and self-confidence – and all in a thoroughly enjoyable environment. I shall feel eternally grateful to Hertford College for accepting me into its historic community, and for providing the foundations for success over the years since.
I’m sure many of us feel that we have a stake in the future of our college, and leaving a gift, now or in our wills, is the least we can do. It’s not so much to offer our thanks for our time here (that is well in the past), but to ensure that Hertford College and its academic excellence remain available to future students, allowing them to share the experience we enjoyed so much. With ever-evolving priorities and needs, flexible (or unrestricted) legacies mean that the college can apportion bequests to the areas of greatest need in years to come.
I feel strongly that we have a duty to help future undergraduates reap the rewards that we have enjoyed.
Chris Brooks (Chemistry, 1962)