Page 58 • The HERALD • 12th March 2026 v THE NEXT HERALD IS OUT ON 2ND APRIL v ASK A PROFESSIONAL Why Establish a Lasting Power of Attorney by Heritage Will Writing No-one likes to think about losing the ability to manage their own a airs, but approximately 820,000 people in this country have some form of dementia. Many others su er from strokes, brain injuries or have mental health conditions, and the truth is there are many things that can impact on someone’s ability to look a er their own a airs - regardless of age. In fact, you almost certainly know someone in this situation. Whilst it’s an uncomfortable thought - and no-one ever believes it will happen to them - around 2 million people in the UK lack mental capacity and it’s something that can happen to anyone, at any time. A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) prepares for the eventuality, and whilst this article covers some of the basics, a more detailed explanation can be found by visiting: www. heritagewillwriting.co.uk. Lasting Powers of Attorney – e Basics • A Lasting Power of Attorney is a legal document that lets you ‘the donor’ appoint one or more people (‘the attorneys’) to help you make decisions or to make decisions on your behalf. e important thing is that you get to choose who will act on your behalf, and you are able to choose people you can trust - people that will ful l their legal responsibility to act in your best interest • If you lose mental capacity and don’t have a Lasting Power of Attorney in place, the Court of Protection will appoint a Deputy to manage your a airs on your behalf. is will involve signi cant legal fees, including annual supervision fees of up to £800, application fees, doctors certi cation fees, a security bond, a deputy fee and a long delay before the Deputyship Order is issued • It’s a common misconception that, in the absence of a Lasting Power of Attorney, your partner or close family member (next of kin) can make decisions on your behalf when you are no longer able to do so - this isn’t the case • It’s another popular common misconception that joint bank accounts can still be used when one of the account holders loses capacity. is isn’t true - in practice, the bank will freeze joint bank accounts, unless there’s a Lasting Power of Attorney in place. For most people trying to deal with a partner that has lost capacity, this represents a signi cant issue • ere are two types of Lasting Power of Attorney, one covers your property and nancial a airs, and the other covers your health and welfare. Many people assume that those making the nancial decisions also make decisions relating to health and care - this isn’t the case, which is why we highly recommend having both types in place • You can apply limits to the authority your attorneys have, if appropriate • Lasting Powers of Attorney replaced the Enduring Powers of Attorney (EPA) in October 2007 If you need any help or advice with regards to preparing your Lasting Powers of Attorney, please contact us on: 023 8087 9243 or email: info@heritagewillwriting.co.uk. New Forest Business Partnership (NFBP) have a really useful programme of business support and networking events, open to everybody and aimed at providing training for local businesses across a variety of essential skills. e programme includes a mix of both online and in person events - and many of them are free of charge. New Forest Business Support Hour: Join in an informal one hour networking meeting – an opportunity to update each other on how your businesses are progressing, to meet new people and to ask each other questions in a relaxed setting. You do need to book your FREE place by 3pm on the day. You will then receive an email before the meeting starts with the Zoom meeting ID and password to enable you to join the meeting online. e next sessions are taking place on Wednesday 18th March and Wednesday 25th March, 4pm–5pm. Other NFBP events: Big Ambitions Workshop, Thursday 12th March, 10.30am–1pm at Balmer Lawn Hotel in Brockenhurst, £5. Marine and Maritime Business Briefing, Tuesday 17th March, 10am-12noon at Royal Lymington Yacht Club, £9 or £29 including lunch. LinkedIn Local New Forest, Tuesday 17th March, 12noon– 2pm at Royal Lymington Yacht Club £20. Networking Breakfast, Thursday 19th March, 8am–9.30am at Tonic Rooms, Sunny elds Farm, £21. Marketing Masterclass – Exhibiting at shows, Thursday 19th March, 11am–1pm at the Countryside Education Trust in Beaulieu, £24. Big Ambitions Workshop, Tuesday 24th March, 10.30am–1pm at Balmer Lawn Hotel in Brockenhurst, £5. Business Breakfast, Wednesday 25th March, 7.30am–9.30am at Rhin e eld House Hotel in Brockenhurst, £25. Lunch and leads, Thursday 26th March, 12noon–1.30pm at e Noisy Lobster, Avon Beach, £25. For more information and to book a place on any of the above events please visit: www.n p. org.uk NFBP BUSINESS SUPPORT PROGRAMME
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