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Individual / Wills Trusts & Probate
A trust is one of the most flexible tools in estate planning. Used properly, it can protect money for children, safeguard a vulnerable or disabled relative, ring-fence assets for the next generation and help manage inheritance tax. Our trust solicitors in Stockport advise individuals and families across Greater Manchester, the North West and nationally on whether a trust is right for them, and set it up correctly if it is.
To speak to our team, call 0161 930 5151, email willsteam@gorvins.com or use our online contact form for a confidential discussion.
A trust is a legal arrangement in which one or more people (the trustees) hold and manage assets for the benefit of others (the beneficiaries). The person who creates the trust and puts assets into it is the settlor. Once assets are in the trust, the trustees are legally responsible for looking after them and using them for the beneficiaries in line with the trust deed and the law. Trusts can be created during your lifetime or through your will to take effect on death.
Trusts are not just for the wealthy. They come into their own whenever you want assets to be managed for someone who cannot or should not manage them alone, or where you want to keep some control over how and when an inheritance is received rather than handing it over outright.
The right trust depends entirely on what you are trying to achieve. The main types we advise on include:
People set up trusts for a range of sensible reasons: to look after money for young children, to protect a vulnerable or disabled family member, to keep assets within the direct family, to provide for a current partner while ultimately protecting children from an earlier relationship, and to retain flexibility so that decisions about who benefits can be made later in light of circumstances. Trusts can also form part of a wider inheritance tax planning strategy, though as explained below the tax treatment of trusts is not always straightforward and needs proper advice.
It is a common misconception that a trust automatically saves inheritance tax. In reality, most trusts created today fall under what is called the relevant property regime, which brings its own inheritance tax charges. Putting assets worth more than the £325,000 nil rate band into such a trust during your lifetime can trigger an immediate 20% entry charge on the excess. The trust is then subject to a periodic charge of up to 6% of its value above the nil rate band on every ten-year anniversary, and to an exit charge when assets leave the trust. Business and agricultural assets in trust are also affected by the reforms taking effect from 6 April 2026, which cap the 100% rate of business and agricultural property relief.
None of this means trusts are a bad idea; it means they must be set up with the tax consequences properly understood and weighed against the benefits. In many cases the flexibility and protection a trust provides is well worth the tax cost, and careful structuring keeps that cost down. That is exactly the kind of judgement our team is qualified to help you make.
You may have seen trusts marketed as a way to protect your home from care home fees. Please treat those claims with caution. If you place assets in trust and later need care, your local authority can treat that as a deliberate deprivation of assets and assess you as if you still owned them, meaning the trust may achieve nothing while having cost money to set up. There is no fixed time limit on how far back a local authority can look, and it only needs to show that avoiding care fees was a significant reason for the transfer. Trusts have many legitimate uses, and there are proper ways to protect a share of a home for your children, for example a life interest trust in a will, but using a trust purely to sidestep care fees is high risk and we will always give you a realistic, honest assessment rather than an easy promise.
Gorvins is a Legal 500 recognised firm based in Stockport, advising clients throughout Greater Manchester, Cheshire, the North West and across England and Wales, and recognised in the Chambers guide for private wealth law. Every member of our team is STEP qualified or working towards the qualification, the leading standard for trust and estate work, and we are members of Solicitors for the Elderly.
We start by understanding what you actually want to achieve, then advise honestly on whether a trust is the right tool, which type fits, and what the tax and practical consequences are. If a trust is right, we draft it properly, advise your trustees on their duties and reporting obligations to HMRC, and can help with the ongoing administration and taxation of the trust afterwards. We also advise trustees of existing trusts, and can help where a trust needs to be varied or wound up. Trusts often sit alongside other planning, so we can advise on your will, lasting powers of attorney and inheritance tax at the same time.
To discuss whether a trust could help you and your family, call 0161 930 5151, email willsteam@gorvins.com or complete our online enquiry form.
The settlor is the person who creates the trust and puts assets into it. The trustees are the people legally responsible for holding and managing those assets. The beneficiaries are the people who benefit from the trust. One person can hold more than one role, but trustees must always act in the beneficiaries’ interests and in line with the trust deed and the law.
Not automatically. Most trusts set up today fall under the relevant property regime, which can bring an immediate 20% entry charge on value above the £325,000 nil rate band, a periodic charge of up to 6% every ten years, and exit charges when assets leave. Trusts can still play a valuable role in inheritance tax planning, but only when structured with the tax consequences properly understood, which is why specialist advice matters.
You should be very cautious about this. If you place your home in trust and later need care, the local authority can treat it as a deliberate deprivation of assets and assess you as though you still owned it, so the trust may achieve nothing. There is no time limit on how far back the authority can look. Trusts do have legitimate uses around property, such as protecting a share of a home for children through a life interest trust in a will, but using one purely to avoid care fees is high risk.
Yes. This is one of the most valuable uses of a trust. A properly drafted disabled or vulnerable beneficiary trust can provide for someone without jeopardising their entitlement to means-tested benefits or care funding, and may attract certain tax advantages. We have particular experience advising in this area.
Trustees should be people you trust to act responsibly and in the beneficiaries’ best interests, and they take on real legal duties. Many people appoint a mix of trusted family members and a professional, such as a solicitor, particularly where the trust is complex or likely to run for many years. We can act as professional trustee where that is helpful, or advise your chosen trustees on their responsibilities.
Usually, yes. Most trusts must be registered on HMRC’s Trust Registration Service, and trustees have ongoing tax reporting responsibilities, including reporting and paying any periodic or exit charges under the relevant property regime. Getting this wrong can lead to penalties, so we help trustees understand and meet their obligations.
Wills, Trust & Probate
