At this time of year, it’s usual to look back on the year that’s passed and on to the following one. So, I decided to do exactly that! Look back at our challenges, successes, and achievements in 2023 and spend a little time looking forward to 2024.
What happened in 2023?
Before we get ahead and start looking forward to 2024, let’s celebrate everything we did this year!
What a year!
We have hit every target we set ourselves!!! We issued more Wills and Powers of Attorney than we’d hoped for. Our turnover increased again by 50%! We smashed (doubled!) the target we’d set ourselves for raising funds for charity! And the company made a small profit which I’m delighted to say has been shared equally between our team and supporting several community projects.
We were recognised for the third year running at the British Wills and Probate Awards! Finalists for Will Writing Firms of the Year (Regional), Highly Commended as Customer Service Champions and a win for me as “One to Watch”, Practitioner of the Year! What an achievement! I am so proud of this team!
We’ve also become friends of another local charity – Morecambe FC Community Sports. We’ve donated to them and have spent a good deal of time with their veterans and Over 60s groups, chatting and offering free advice. We hope to be allowed in on the dominoes team soon 😉
We also welcomed Sue to our team too! Sue joined us in July to help run our office and has made a huge difference in such a short time. Our team and our clients all love the way she brings positive energy to everything we do.
And some breaking news!
I am thrilled to reveal that we have reached another amazing milestone in the last week. We have now raised over £20,000 for CancerCare North Lancashire and South Cumbria! That comes from our commitment to donate 5% from every Will or Power of Attorney we make, plus some wonderful gifts from our clients and partners. And almost £2000 raised from the skydive that I am doing on 19th December! If you haven’t sponsored me, there is still time to do so here! Remember, every penny counts!
The highs of 2023 were, however, affected by a loss for us. My Mum died in March after spending time in care since my Dad died in April 2021. Of course, this is was also devastating for my sister Paula, and my niece Georgia, who both work for us. It was a terrible time for us as a family but I’m proud of how we managed. And we are amazingly grateful to Andrea and Jane who held the fort while we needed to take our time out. Thank you, team, 😊
So, what next?
When we started looking forward to 2024, we decided we would have big aims! Expansion is at the core of those plans!
A new space!
We only moved into our offices at White Cross, Lancaster in April 2022, but already we’ve outgrown the space! So, we are moving again! Still in White Cross, but in the beautiful old Gatehouse. Lots of period features, but also lots of refurbishment to do. We hope to welcome you soon, once this fantastic space is ready – early January is the target. The whole team is excited to be able to spread out in our bigger new home!
New clients in a new area!
We have some plans. More to reveal soon, but we are looking to expand geographically, and build on the fantastic work we are already doing in Lancashire and North Wales. Watch this space!
New team members!
When looking forward to 2024, we know that as we expand, we also need to grow our team. We already have a new Estate Planner in North Wales who is undergoing training with the Society of Will Writers. She has started to accompany me on a few client visits and will work alongside me in the early part of 2024. The big reveal will be coming soon, but I’m excited to have someone local to the area who can help with our growing business there!
And we also plan to take on an apprentice later in the year. We want to help someone grow into a career they can love as much as we do.
New services!
This year we have started to help those who have lost someone and have been appointed Executor or Administrator. This is particularly rewarding work for me. Holding someone’s hand as they as they navigate administering the estate of their loved ones, really does make our job worthwhile.
So, we plan to expand this service and have some new software to help us make this process more efficient. You can find out more about this service on our website.
New charities!
Next year we will be supporting more local charities with our donations, as well as giving our time. We’ve supported CancerCare for the last 4 years and have raised a huge amount for them. We passionately believe in their cause and love what they do. We will continue to donate a portion of our fees to them of course. But we will also be supporting 3 other causes close to our hearts, that do amazing work in our community too. So our donations will be split between CancerCare, Morecambe FC Community Sports, UniqueKidz and Positive Futures. We will introduce you to their incredible teams early in the New Year. So, look out for more about their work.
New targets!
But the most important thing when are looking forward to 2024 it that we continue to challenge ourselves! We are setting even bigger targets for the next year. They are:
- Assist more people to get those important documents in place.
- Help spread the word to more community and business groups.
- Raise more money for our chosen charities.
- Use our increased profits to help our community.
The team are excited, and ready to go!
If you’d like to know more about us and our services, just call us on 01524 571032 or complete our Information request form on our website.