The Horniman opened its doors in 1901 as a place to connect with history, culture and the natural world. Since then, generations of families from London and beyond have grown up with the Horniman as a constant delight, wonder and resource for life-long learning.
By remembering the Horniman in your will you can ensure that many generations to come can enjoy our collections, galleries and gardens.
The Horniman has been part of our lives for more than 40 years - a place we've enjoyed good times with family and friends and found some peace in the gardens when times were challenging. The Horniman deserves our support and we want it to be able to offer future generations as much as it has given us so we have included a legacy in our wills.
How can a gift in your will help?
Read our comprehensive guide to making a will and find out how to make one for free.
The Horniman is the only museum in London where nature and culture can be seen side-by-side. Leaving a gift in your will is one of the most valuable ways you can help us to continue our work. Your gift, no matter what size, could enable us to:
- Nurture future generations of researchers, scientists and activists by delivering our fantastic learning programme to even more school children.
- Carry out thorough research and conservation of our 350,000 objects spanning world cultures, natural history, and music.
- Grow our music programme and support emerging artists from South London.
- Fund essential repairs to our historic listed buildings, ensuring the collection can continue to be housed safely and the museum is accessible to all.
- Care for the animals across our site and improve biodiversity in our gardens.
And so much more. There are always new and exciting projects on our horizon, and we need your help to make them a reality. The most useful legacies, no matter how big or small, are those which are left to our general work, so we can use them where the need is greatest. However, if you wish to leave your gift to a particular area of our work, please speak directly to our Fundraising Team.
Remembering the Horniman in your will
We understand that making a legacy gift is an important and personal decision, and that your family and loved ones must come first. The Horniman has a full charitable status (charity number: 802725), so leaving a gift in your will to us is a tax efficient way of supporting some incredible work and can help to reduce the inheritance tax burden on your family.
There are several ways to remember a charity in your will. You can decide to leave a residuary, pecuniary or a specific gift. A residuary gift is a percentage of your remaining estate, while a pecuniary gift is a specified amount. You can read our comprehensive guide to making your will for recommendations, will writing resources and helpful tips for writing your will.
The Horniman has partnered with Octopus Legacy to provide a free will writing service. Through this service you can make a will online, and receive online, telephone or in person support from their inhouse experts throughout the process. You can find out more and start writing your will for free here.
Become closer to the Horniman
If you do choose to leave a gift to the Horniman please let us know so we can ensure that your gift is recognised and remembered thoughtfully. It is our promise that we will act with discretion and compassion.
A gift to the Horniman can be a wonderful way to honour someone special to you, and we also have beautiful spaces available for hire to hold funerals and wakes to celebrate a loved one’s life.