Will writing, LPAs and probate in Cranbrook
Personal, professional estate planning across Cranbrook and the surrounding Wealden villages — at your kitchen table, on your schedule.
Cranbrook sits at the heart of the Kent Weald, with a cluster of smaller villages spread across the surrounding countryside. From my base I regularly visit clients in Sissinghurst, Goudhurst, Hawkhurst, Benenden, Rolvenden, Frittenden, Kilndown, Iden Green, Gills Green, Curtisden Green, and Four Throws. The signing visit is included in the quoted price wherever you are on that list — there's no extra travel charge for the smaller villages.
I'm Emma Wrigley — a law graduate with over 20 years in the legal sector — and I set up Kent Legacy Planning because estate planning should fit around your life, not the other way around. The conversations I have with clients happen mostly on the phone, at whatever time of day suits you, and the signing happens over a cup of tea at your own kitchen table — evenings and weekends if that's what works, with no office visits and no rushed appointments.
Services available in Cranbrook
Every fee is quoted in writing before you commit, and will and LPA prices include a signing visit to your home in Cranbrook or the surrounding villages.
Wills & related documents
Will Writing
From £225
A will drafted from scratch for your circumstances, signed and witnessed properly at your own kitchen table.
Read more →Mirror Wills for Couples
£400 per couple
A coordinated pair of wills for a couple whose wishes broadly match, drafted together so they agree with each other.
Read more →Trust Wills
Price on consultation
Ringfence your share of the family home so your partner can go on living there and your children still inherit it.
Read more →Letter of Wishes
£35 with a will / £85 standalone
The personal guidance that sits alongside your will — funeral preferences, bequests, and notes for guardians.
Read more →Will Review
£95
A read-through of the will you already have, whoever wrote it, and an honest answer on whether it still works.
Read more →Codicils
From £125
A signed, witnessed addition to an existing will, where the change is straightforward enough not to need a new one.
Read more →Powers of attorney & health decisions
Lasting Powers of Attorney
From £275 (plus OPG fees)
Let people you trust make health or financial decisions for you if you ever can't make them yourself.
Read more →LPA Reviews & Revocations
From £95
Check, change or revoke a registered LPA that no longer says what you need it to say.
Read more →General Power of Attorney
From £195
Financial authority for someone who has capacity now — a spell abroad, a stay in hospital, a property sale.
Read more →Advance Decision (Living Will)
£195 one person / £300 per couple
A written, legally binding refusal of specified medical treatment, so your wishes are known if you cannot say them.
Read more →Probate & estate administration
Executor & Estate Review
£195
What the will means, what you actually have to do, and whether a grant of probate is needed at all.
Read more →Estate Administration Support
Quoted for the work agreed
Help with as much or as little of an administration you're running yourself.
Read more →Comprehensive Estate Administration
From £2,500
Everything from registering the death to distributing the estate, apart from the Grant application, which stays with the executor.
Read more →Other documents
A recent client near Cranbrook
“Emma drew up a will for my father-in-law promptly and went to his house with a witness for signing. Extremely helpful as we live over 200 miles away.”
Property Trust Wills in the Cranbrook area
For most families around Cranbrook, Sissinghurst, Goudhurst and the surrounding villages, the family home is the single largest asset in the estate. That makes how it passes — and to whom — one of the most important decisions in your will. A standard will leaves your share of the home outright to your partner, which works for many couples but isn’t right for everyone.
A Property Trust Will — sometimes called a Property Protection Trust — lets you ringfence your share of the home so that, after you’ve gone, your partner can continue living there for the rest of their life, but your share is ultimately protected for the people you want to inherit it. It’s particularly relevant for:
- Couples on a second marriage or blended families, where each partner wants to be sure their own children inherit their share.
- Couples concerned about future care costs — once your share is held in trust, it doesn’t form part of the surviving partner’s estate for means-testing in the way an outright inheritance would.
- Families with a substantial Wealden property where the home represents most of the inheritance and you want to be certain it reaches the next generation intact.
The process includes severance of joint tenancy — the legal step that changes how you hold the property so the trust can actually take effect. Severing the joint tenancy is included in what I quote for the pair of wills, so it never appears as a separate charge afterwards. The signing visit is included in that price too, and it happens at your kitchen table rather than in a solicitor’s office.
Questions from Cranbrook clients
Which villages around Cranbrook do you cover?
I cover Cranbrook itself and all of the surrounding villages, including Sissinghurst, Goudhurst, Hawkhurst, Benenden, Rolvenden, Frittenden, Kilndown, Iden Green, Gills Green, Curtisden Green, and Four Throws. There's no additional charge for visiting any of these — the signing visit is included in the quoted price.
How does probate work now that there are no local Probate Registries?
Probate applications in England and Wales are handled centrally by HMCTS rather than by district registries, so location isn't relevant to processing speed. What matters is getting the paperwork right first time — incorrect applications get stopped and can add months to the process. The application itself is one you make as executor, directly to HMCTS as a personal applicant: preparing a probate application for someone else is a reserved legal activity and not something I'm authorised to do. What I can do is talk you through what it asks for, deal with HMRC for any inheritance tax so the figures are settled first, and handle the wider administration around it.
Do you offer evening or weekend appointments in Cranbrook?
Yes — I'm available seven days a week, including evenings, with no extra charge for out-of-hours visits. Many couples in the Cranbrook area find an evening appointment after work easier than taking time off, and weekend visits work well for clients with older relatives who need a family member present.
Many of us own a family home in the Weald — how does that affect estate planning?
For most families around Cranbrook, the family home is the largest single asset in the estate. That makes how you hold it — and how it passes — central to any will. A Property Trust Will (sometimes called a Property Protection Trust) lets you protect your share of the home for your children or chosen beneficiaries while still allowing your partner to live there for life. We sever the joint tenancy as part of the process so the trust can actually take effect. It's particularly common for couples on a second marriage, blended families, or anyone with concerns about future care costs.
I'm helping an elderly relative in Hawkhurst or Benenden — can you visit them at home?
Absolutely. The detail is gathered by questionnaire and phone, so there's no formal appointment to sit through — which matters for older clients and anyone with mobility difficulties — and then I come out to them to sign at home. Family members are welcome to be present if that's helpful, and I'm happy to coordinate around relatives travelling in.
What does it cost to get everything sorted in one go?
Most couples choose the Complete Peace of Mind Package — mirror wills, both types of LPA for both partners, and letters of wishes. That's six professionally drafted documents in one process, and it works out cheaper than arranging each piece separately. I'll give you the exact figure on our first phone call, and OPG registration fees are payable separately to the government.