Family Trust Fund
Setting up a family trust is one way of ensuring your assets are protected as you prepare for circumstances later on in life or after death. In particular, a family trust provides a framework in which assets such as money and property may be managed for people who are possibly incapable of doing so for themselves. This may be through a disability, illness or perhaps because they are simply too young.
A family trust is a legal arrangement governed by the terms in the trust's deeds: a legally binding document, also known as a declaration of trust, produced by the original donor or 'settlor' who starts up the trust. The deed's will state the settlor's wishes for the trust such as the individuals who will benefit from certain assets. This person is known as the beneficiary / beneficiaries and may be a single person or any number of people. The deed's must also state who the trustees are: the trustees are those that are legally responsible for the assets until the deeds state they are to be passed onto the beneficiaries.
Because your and your family's circumstances are inherently unique, there are a number of different family trusts to choose from. HM Revenue & Customs taxes each family trust differently and there may also be restrictions on the number of trusts you can set up. It may be helpful to talk to an independent financial advisor about the family trust options available to you and which may be the best option for you.
For additional information on family trust funds, see our page on family trusts explained.
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