Combat Stress Legacy Team wins prestigious Smee & Ford Award

We are delighted to announce that our Legacy team has won the Excellence in Donor Journey & Pledger Stewardship award at the prestigious Smee & Ford Legacy Giving Awards 2024.

This award, presented at the award ceremony in London earlier this month, recognises excellence in building and providing an unbroken and steady journey for the supporter, from that very first conversation right through to them selflessly leaving a gift in their will.

Facing stiff competition from 108 entries and five other finalists - Shelter, British Red Cross, Imperial College London, Thames Hospice and The Air Ambulance – we were presented with the category award following judging from an expert panel of 42 prominent figures from the legacy giving community.

Winning this category is testament to our team’s efforts in inspiring and guiding supporters to leave the ultimate gift.

At Combat Stress, legacies, or Gifts in Wills, are a vital source of our income, funding treatment for one in five of the veterans we support. The life-changing gifts left in legacies enable our supporters to leave a positive mark on the veteran community.

Sarah Seddon, Head of Planned Giving at Combat Stress, said: “We are so thrilled to have won. It was very unexpected given the brilliant and widely renowned nature of the other finalists we were up against.

“In our submission, we highlighted how we communicate with supporters – personal, tailored and handwritten wherever possible. We know that the motivation for them leaving a gift in a Will is very much a belief in our work and the duty of care we have for those who have served our country and now need our help.  We talk to supporters about the future, what impact legacies have on the lives of veterans and how they have the power to have such a positive impact for future generations. This is very much an ongoing relationship with supporters and one we really strive to maintain.

“We’re so grateful for each and every gift.”

More information on the 2024 Smee & Ford Legacy Giving Awards and the full list of Winners and Highly Commended can be found at https://legacygivingawards.co.uk/winners-2024.

Or for more information on legacies at Combat Stress, visit: https://combatstress.org.uk/support-us/give-money/gifts-wills or call Sarah Seddon on 01372 587 144.