A valid will requires two independent witnesses present simultaneously. Under the Wills Act 1837, you must sign in the presence of two witnesses who are both there at the same time, and who then each sign in your presence.
A witness — or that witness's spouse or civil partner — must not be a beneficiary: anyone who witnesses the will loses anything left to them under it.
This template is a guide only — a starting point, not legal advice, and does not replace a solicitor. Consider professional advice for any property in trust, business interests, overseas assets, complex family arrangements, or anyone likely to dispute the will.
A will is the document that decides who inherits, who administers, and who is protected. England and Wales law does not require a solicitor to draft a will — it requires correct execution: a signature, two independent witnesses, and the right structure.
This template lays out a simple will in the order the law expects, with each required clause explained and a blank to complete. Use it to understand the shape of a valid will and to draft a first version — then, before you sign, weigh whether your circumstances are simple enough to complete this yourself.
For many people they are. For trusts, business interests, overseas assets, second families, or complex arrangements, they are not.
The six required elements of a valid simple will.
The seven clauses of a simple will, in the order the law expects, in the words the template uses. Blanks are shown as rules with the field named in brackets. The PDF and the Word file carry the same clauses with room to write.
This is the last will and testament of ______ [full legal name], born ______ [date of birth], of ______ [address], made by me on the ______ day of ______ ______. I declare this to be my last will, and that I am of sound mind and make it freely.
Names you so there is no doubt whose will it is. Write your full legal name exactly as it appears on formal documents.
I revoke all earlier wills and codicils made by me.
Cancels every earlier will and codicil, so two documents can never be argued against each other. The sentence stands as written.
I appoint as the executor(s) and trustee(s) of my will: ______ [full name] of ______ [address], and ______ [full name] of ______ [address]. If either named executor is unable or unwilling to act, I appoint ______ of ______ to act in their place.
Executors carry out the will: apply for probate, gather the estate, pay the debts, distribute what is left. Up to four may act together. Always name a substitute.
If on my death any of my children are under 18 and have no other surviving parent with parental responsibility, I appoint ______ [full name] of ______ [address] as their guardian(s).
Leave the clause out entirely if it does not apply. Ask the person first: guardianship is a serious thing to be asked to accept.
I give the following specific gifts, free of tax, to the people and organisations named. Each gift fails if the person dies before me, unless I say otherwise: ______ [item or sum of money] to ______ [full name].
Describe each item so only one thing can be meant, and name the person fully. For a charity, give its full registered name and registered charity number.
I give all the rest of my estate, after payment of my debts, funeral and testamentary expenses, and any tax due, to ______ [full name(s)], ______ [share each]. If they do not survive me by ______ days, I give my residuary estate instead to ______ [substitute beneficiary, and how shared].
The most important clause. The residue is everything not given away above, which for most people is most of what they leave. A will that forgets it lets the remainder pass under intestacy. A 28-day or 30-day survivorship period is common.
Signed by the above-named ______ as their last will, in our joint presence, and then by us in theirs. We were both present at the same time when the testator signed.
Followed by your signature and the date, then each witness's signature, printed name, address and occupation. This is where most home-made wills fail.
The Whitmore specimen joins the clauses into a finished will, so you can see the shape before you draft your own. Everything in it is invented. It is a model of form, not a will to copy: your names, circumstances and wishes will differ.
Nine rules decide whether a will on this template stands. Each is paraphrased here in plain words and linked to the provision itself; the source is the authority, not this page.
| Provision | What it says | Where it bites in this template | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wills Act 1837, section 9 | A will must be in writing and signed by the testator, or by someone at their direction and in their presence. The signature must be made or acknowledged in front of two or more witnesses present at the same time, and each witness must then sign, or acknowledge their signature, in the testator's presence. | Clause 7 and the signing routine: two witnesses, together, then each signs. | read ↗ |
| Wills Act 1837, section 15 | A gift to a person who witnesses the will, or to that witness's husband, wife or civil partner, is void. The will itself stays valid. | Why neither witness may be a beneficiary, or married to one. | read ↗ |
| Wills Act 1837, sections 18 and 18B | Marriage, or forming a civil partnership, revokes a will made before it, unless the will was made in expectation of that particular marriage or partnership. | Why a will needs remaking after a wedding. A codicil cannot revive it. | read ↗ |
| Wills Act 1837, sections 18A and 18C | On divorce, annulment or dissolution, the former spouse or civil partner is treated as having died on the day the marriage or partnership ended: gifts to them lapse and their appointment as executor falls away. The rest of the will stands. | Why clause 6 names a substitute beneficiary and clause 3 a substitute executor. | read ↗ |
| Wills Act 1837, section 20 | A will is revoked only by a later will or codicil, by a written declaration executed in the same way as a will, or by the testator destroying it, or having it destroyed in their presence, with the intention of revoking it. | Clause 2, and why every earlier original is destroyed once the new will is signed. | read ↗ |
| Wills Act 1837, section 33 | A gift to the testator's child or remoter descendant who dies before the testator, leaving descendants of their own, passes to those descendants unless the will shows a contrary intention. | Why clause 6 says what happens if a beneficiary dies first, rather than leaving it to the statute. | read ↗ |
| Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, section 1 | A spouse or civil partner, a former spouse or civil partner who has not remarried, a partner who lived with the deceased for two years, a child, a person treated as a child of the family, and anyone being maintained by the deceased may apply to the court on the ground that the will does not make reasonable financial provision for them. | Why the limits section sends second families and dependants to a solicitor. | read ↗ |
| GOV.UK, Make a will | To be legal, a will must be made by someone 18 or over, made voluntarily, made by a person of sound mind, made in writing, signed in the presence of two witnesses who are over 18, and signed by those two witnesses in the testator's presence. | The checklist the whole template is built to satisfy. | read ↗ |
| Video-witnessed wills | A temporary rule made during the pandemic allowed witnesses to be present by video link for wills made between 31 January 2020 and 31 January 2024. It has ended: witnesses must be physically present. | Why the attestation clause says 'in our joint presence' and means the same room. | read ↗ |
Sources read on 16 September 2026. The Law Commission's report Modernising Wills Law (May 2025) recommends, among other things, ending the rule that marriage revokes a will and allowing electronic wills. Those are recommendations; none is law yet.
The most common DIY will failure is not about the words — it is about the witnesses.
When a template is not enough — and the cost of getting it wrong.
Eleven A4 pages, 181 KB. The seven clauses in the wording you sign, each with a short note, then the attestation block and the witnessing rules on pages 9 and 10. Print it and write in the blanks, or type into the Word file. No account, no email.
This template is for England and Wales only. Do not use it for a Scottish or Northern Irish will. The law and signing requirements differ.
Marriage or civil partnership can affect or revoke an existing will. If you expect to marry or form a civil partnership after signing this will, take advice or use a will specifically drafted for that situation before signing.
If there is any doubt about whether the person making the will understands what the will does, the property they own, or the people they might reasonably be expected to provide for, do not rely on a self-completed template without professional advice.
Take the blank will template with you.
We'll email you the blank will template as a PDF — for when you're at a printer, or to pass to the person who'll need it. The download above stays free either way.
What the blank template cannot do — and what the portal adds.
Related templates: free mirror wills template · free codicil template · letter of wishes. Related reading: how much does a will cost · do I need a solicitor for my will · the Valoren Will
Arrive at the appointment prepared
The context that sits beside the will
The companion to a will
The list to work through after a death
The letters for after, not before
List what the estate owns and owes
A small, self-contained change once this is signed
Two matched wills for a couple, on the same pattern
This blank template, filled in and annotated, for three households