Making a Will as a Single Parent

If you are a single parent and the other parent either has died, has no parental responsibility, or is otherwise not in the picture, then a guardian you appoint in your will is likely to take effect straightaway if you die, since there may be no one else with parental responsibility to continue caring for your children. This makes the appointment more immediately significant than it might be for a couple raising children together.

It is worth checking your own situation carefully. If the other parent is alive and does have parental responsibility, for example through being named on the birth certificate, marriage, or a parental responsibility agreement or order, they would normally continue to care for the children even if you have appointed a different guardian, and your appointment would generally only take effect in different circumstances, such as if that parent later also died or lost parental responsibility.

The considerations are similar to those for any parent: shared values, practical ability to take on the role, stability, and willingness. As a single parent, however, it is worth thinking particularly carefully about how much day-to-day change your children might face, since they may already have adjusted to living primarily with you, and a guardian's own household, routines and location could mean further significant change.

Always ask the person you are considering, explain what you would hope for, and make sure they understand the scale of the commitment. Naming a reserve guardian is especially important for single parents, since there may be no other automatic fallback if your first choice becomes unable or unwilling to act.

As with any parent, a will lets you decide how your estate is divided if you have more than one child, and at what age each child should inherit outright, commonly 18, 21 or 25, with money held on trust by your executors or trustees in the meantime. For a single parent, it is worth thinking about whether your chosen guardian will need financial support for the children's everyday costs, and making sure your trustees have clear enough guidance to release funds sensibly.

If you are the only parent providing financially for your children, it is also worth reviewing whether you have adequate life insurance or savings, since your will only deals with what you actually own; it does not create money that is not there. Many single parents find that combining a will with appropriate life cover gives more complete protection for their children.

Choose executors and trustees you trust to act sensibly and promptly, particularly since a single parent's estate may need to be administered without another parent available to help coordinate matters. Consider whether these should be the same person as your appointed guardian or a different person, bearing in mind the different skills each role requires.

It can be reassuring to name more than one executor to act jointly, so responsibility and workload are shared, and to name reserves in case your first choices are unable to act when the time comes.

As a single parent, your circumstances may change more visibly over time, whether through a new relationship, house move, or changes in your children's own circumstances as they grow older. Review your will whenever something significant changes, and remember that if you later marry or enter a civil partnership, this generally revokes an earlier will automatically, so a new will would be needed.

Keeping your will current is one of the simplest ways to make sure the guardian, executors and financial arrangements you have chosen still reflect your actual wishes and family situation.