Practical Advice

There are many useful steps you can take to get your affairs in order.

This could include things such as:

  • arranging for someone else to manage your affairs
  • making a Will
  • preparing for a funeral
  • cornea and tissue donation

 

Arranging for someone else to manage your affairs

If you are struggling to manage your financial affairs, you may be able to arrange for a trusted person to help you. This help is called different things depending on what you need help with, how much help you need and how long for.

For example, you may want help to:

  • operate a bank account
  • deal with your benefit claims
  • look after your finances through a power of attorney.

 

Making a will

A Will helps you to decide what happens to your property, money and possessions (your ‘estate’) after your death, and making a Will ensures that your wishes will be carried out when the time comes.

Not everyone needs to make a Will. If you have just enough money to cover the cost of your funeral, then a Will may not be necessary. If your financial affairs are more complex and you die without making a Will (intestate), your estate will be distributed according to the rules of intestacy. This may not include your partner if you are not legally married or in a civil partnership.

You can write your own Will as long as you are at least 18 years of age and of sound mind.

If you are a patient at Wigan and Leigh Hospice and you need to prepare your Will, we will be able to give general guidance as to whether it is advisable for you to make a Will or not.

 

Preparing for a funeral

A funeral is a significant event. It may not be easy to think about, whether your own or that of a relative; for example how best to commemorate a life, what to include or leave out. However, planning a funeral can be helpful for those who are approaching the end of life and is one way of ensuring that their wishes are respected.

 

Benefits and care packages

For information on benefits or care packages please contact Wigan Council.

More information on accessing support can be viewed on the NHS website in their section on Benefits for Carers.

 

Accessing equipment

For information on accessing equipment, such as wheelchairs, please speak to your District Nurse or GP who can make a referral.