Where there's a will, there's a better life

For many people, writing a will seems like one of life's most depressing tasks.

But according to a roadshow held in Birmingham yesterday, it need not be. In fact, according to the Society of Will Writers, it is an issue that must be addressed - regardless of a person's state of health, age, gender or fortune.

As part of the national campaign for Will Awareness Week, the organisation visited Victoria Square to help advise people on the benefits writing a will - which 70 per cent of the UK population have not done.

Brian McMillan, director general of The Society of Will Writers, said the event was the first of its kind.

"We feel that the issue of having a will should be at the forefront of people's minds. We want to raise as much awareness as possible during the six days and to help answer as many questions as possible so that the figure of 70 per cent is lessened considerably," he said.

Representatives of the organisation were on hand to give advice and information on how to create a will, and to outline the benefits.

In addition, people who already had a will were able to check they were legally accurate.

Specialist advisors also gave advice about what to do after a death if a person does not have a will or whether a will was out-of-date and does not distribute their estate as they would have wished.

They answered questions about new and existing wills, offered a free will check and gave information about inheritance tax and estate planning.

In addition, the society discussed its plans to launch its Emotional Will - an online programme which will enable people to leave a legacy behind them when they pass away.

This allows a person to fill out diary extracts, add images, or leave a speech for the weddings of relatives or close ones.

A spokeswoman said: "The society hopes that this will add a more "human" feeling to the act of making a will and encourage people to do so.

"Writing an emotional will is a very special thing to do for yourselves and others.

"The difficulty lies in knowing what to say and how to do justice to a lifetime of memories."

The roadshow will also visit Lincoln, Leeds, Manchester, Bristol and Milton Keynes.