Writing a will is the best way to have a say over what happens when you die. This is incredibly important if you have children under 18, as it allows you to state who you want to be their legal guardian if anything happens to you. Without a will, the courts could be left to decide who looks after them.

Writing a will also allows you to set out how you want to divide up your estate, including any property or accounts you own. You can make an inventory of your assets and choose exactly how much you want people to inherit, helping to prevent any family disputes when you’re gone.

Why is MQ offering free wills?

MQ has partnered with Farewill, the largest will writer in the UK, to cover the cost to have wills written, so that there is no cost to our supporters.

We do this in the hope that you will consider leaving a gift to help fund mental health research in the future, but you are under no obligation to.

If it's free, why do I need to enter my card details?

Farewill uses card details as an additional identity verification. However by using the code MQ-WEB at the checkout you will not be charged for the cost of writing your will.

What if I don’t leave a gift to MQ?

That’s fine! You can still have a will written at no cost to you by clicking on the link below and using the discount code MQ-WEB at the checkout.

What if I want to also leave gifts to other charities?

You can leave multiple charitable gifts, and express other specific wishes, using Farewills easy to use platform.

How long does it take to write a will?

If your estate is fairly simple then it can take as little as 30 minutes. You simply go through Farewills online process and use MQ-WEB at the checkout. Your will will then be checked by Farewills experts who will send it back to you once it's ready. Then just print and sign your documents in the presence of two witnesses to make it legally binding. If your estate is a little more complicated (For example if you have multiple properties or investments) then you may wish to speak to an expert on the phone. Book a free call-back at https://farewill.com/mq-telephone. Alternatively, you can call Farewill on 020 8050 2686, please note you must tell the Customer Support team you are an MQ Mental Health supporter.

I already have a will and would like to amend it to leave a gift to MQ

Farewill's experts can give advice on how to amend an existing will, and answer other questions. Please call them on 020 8050 2686.

What happens if I don’t write a will?

On average, it costs families around £9,700 when their loved one dies without a will. This is usually made up of assets they can’t find or don’t know exist. By writing a will you help your loved ones to know exactly where to find everything.

If you die before making a will, any assets that can be found will be divided up following the rules of intestacy. These are a set of traditional laws that define exactly who gets what – but they may not follow exactly what you would want.

How old should you be when you write a will?

Every adult would, ideally, have a will. This gives you and your family piece of mind were the unexpected to happen.

This offer of a free will from MQ is open to anyone over the age of 18.

For more frequently asked questions you can read the extensive information available on Farewills own FAQ’s page here.

Throughout his life Jan Szczuka had always been a champion of ‘the underdog’.

Quietly generous, and a determined problem solver, Jan was very aware that both compassion and commitment were needed to address the inequalities he witnessed throughout his life.

Jan was highly academic and very intelligent. He worked as a patent attorney, had a family with two children, Timothy and Mark, and lived life to the full.

Adulthood resulted in Jan becoming ever more engaged in a range of physical, intellectual and spiritual activities including skiing, attending arts festivals, concerts and opera, sea kayaking, marathon running, and doing everything he could to support his wife, Faith, in her passion of carriage driving. In his retirement, Jan developed another dimension to his talents: woodworking. Jan completed an intensive course, learning every technique necessary to design and create fine furniture

This work ethic and desire to live life to the full was inherited from his parents, Helena and Józef. The Soviet invasion and occupation of the eastern half of Poland in 1939 resulted in them, amongst over one million people, being transported in cattle trucks to labour camps in Siberia where conditions were so harsh that many died including their three children. The 1941 Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact started a chain of events which resulted in their release, an arduous and prolonged journey via a number of countries, and eventual evacuation to the UK. They both joined the RAF, Helena as a parachute packer and Józef as a wireless operator in Bomber Command.

After the war, they had four more children: Zosia who tragically died of pneumonia aged just one year, Jan and his two younger sisters Teresa and Jadwiga.

In Jan’s personal and professional life, he was very aware of the negative impact of poor mental health on the individual and others, as well as the inadequacies in provision of care and inequalities in research funding. In situations of apparent absence of a solution, he was even more determined to do what he could to help.

In 2014 Jan was diagnosed with lung cancer. He was stoic in the face of his illness and began to plan for the future of his estate by writing a will. He specified that he wanted to leave a legacy to mental health research. In true Jan style, he wanted to ‘champion the underdog’ and particularly wanted to support research into borderline personality disorder, a condition that affects around 1 in 100 people, but which has had little study. Although most of his legacy contributed to the Brighter Futures Programme, MQ agreed to set aside a portion specifically for research into BPD in line with Jan’s wishes.

BPD peaks in adolescence and affects decision making, impulse control and relationships. Many people with BPD experience intense emotions and find it difficult to maintain work or study, often meaning life can be a challenge.

Since his passing in 2016, Jan’s legacy has led to the funding of a new study at the University of Glasgow. This project is trialling a new treatment programme that, if successful, can help to change the lives of thousands of people every year.

Jan’s sister, Teresa, said of her brother’s legacy:

“It would make him feel proud and reassured that his legacy aims were being met.   He wouldn’t make a song and dance about it; he would be quietly satisfied about the positive results.”

If you would like to leave a gift to MQ in your will to help fund the next breakthrough in mental health research, then we have made this easy for you.

Just click here to start writing your will, and when you get to the check out just use code MQ-WEB to waive all fees.