Futura Planning — Your Legacy. Our Expertise

Keep you and your interests safe

Give the people you trust the legal power to make decisions on your behalf if you ever cannot make them yourself, with our fully supported Lasting Power of Attorney service.

  • In person or online
  • We handle the OPG registration
  • Qualified, insured SWW members
Book a free consultation

The basics

What is a Lasting Power of Attorney?

A Lasting Power of Attorney, usually shortened to LPA, is a legal document that lets you appoint one or more people you trust to act or make decisions on your behalf if you lose physical or mental capacity. Your attorneys must include you in decisions wherever possible, and always act in your best interest.

There are two types, and most people put both in place. You can appoint between one and four attorneys, all aged over 18, and we recommend at least two so that if one cannot act you do not need to start again.

Want the fuller picture, including when an LPA comes into effect and what happens if you do not have one in place? Read our in-depth guide, What Is a Lasting Power of Attorney?.

Own your home or bank account jointly with a partner? That alone doesn't give either of you the legal authority to act if the other loses capacity, see our guide, Do You Still Need a Power of Attorney If Assets Are in Joint Names?, to see why.

An LPA for Health and Welfare isn't the same as an Advance Directive, which lets you refuse specific treatments in advance rather than appoint someone to decide for you. Many families benefit from having both, and we can talk you through how they fit together.

Prefer to sort this face to face? Our home visit service covers LPA alongside Will writing in a single visit.

Prefer to do this from home over a video call? Our online LPA service covers the same ground remotely.

Each LPA currently costs £92 to register with the Office of the Public Guardian, though a reduced fee may apply if you're on a low income or certain benefits, we'll confirm exactly what applies to you.

Health & WelfareDecisions about your daily care, medical treatment and where you live. It only comes into effect once you can no longer decide for yourself.
Property & Financial AffairsManaging bank accounts, paying bills, collecting pensions and dealing with property. With your permission it can be used as soon as it is registered.

Prefer a quick chat first?

If you're still weighing up your options, you're welcome to book a free 15-minute Initial Chat instead of a full consultation, no pressure, just a straightforward conversation about your situation.

Book a 15-Minute Initial Chat

Ways to get your LPA

Choose the service that suits you

Many clients prefer to sit down face to face at home. Others want a fully guided video consultation, or a reduced-price Fast Track service for straightforward cases.

Most popular

In-Home LPA Service

We meet you in your home, explore your circumstances and the attorneys you have in mind, and look at every option together.

  • Full advice and recommendations
  • We oversee all signing and witnessing
  • Submitted to the OPG for you
Book a home visit

Guided LPA Video Service

The full guided service over Zoom or Teams. We advise on every option, then complete, oversee and register your LPAs.

  • Full advice, no travel
  • Signing overseen remotely
  • Registered with the OPG
Book a video appointment

Fast Track LPA Service

For straightforward cases without full advice. Documents reach you as PDFs within 48 hours, or on paper with our Print and Post option.

  • Reduced price
  • Documents within 48 hours
  • Clear signing guidance included
Explore Fast Track

Run a business?

A separate Business LPA lets someone you trust keep the company running, paying staff and signing contracts, if you ever lose capacity.

Explore Business LPAs
Weston-super-MareBristolBathClevedonPortisheadNailseaCheddarBurnham-on-SeaWellsCongresburyWinscombe

In-person LPA services across Somerset, Bristol, Bath and beyond. See all the areas we cover.

What happens after you choose

We take care of the whole process

1

Speak with us

A friendly chat to explore your options and take your instructions.

2

We prepare everything

We draw up the documents and guide you and your attorneys through signing.

3

Registered with the OPG

We submit everything to the Office of the Public Guardian to be registered.

Up to 20 wksthe OPG can take that long to register — we handle all of it for you

What might happen without an LPA?

Many assume their loved ones could automatically step in if something happened. Often they cannot. Injury or illness can take away capacity, and without an LPA in place:

The state decides how and where you live
Bank accounts and finances could be frozen
Doctors could ignore your wishes
Selling your house would not be possible
Family would need a costly court order to act
Months of delay while loved ones wait
Put yours in place

Worried a diagnosis has come too late?

A dementia diagnosis doesn't automatically mean someone can't make a valid LPA. Capacity is about the specific decision, not the label.

Dementia and Signing an LPA

Arranging Power of Attorney for a parent?

If you're helping a parent set up their LPA, or already acting as their attorney, it helps to know exactly what you can and can't do. Our guide walks through accessing accounts, spending money, and selling property, in plain English.

Power of Attorney for a Parent

Questions, answered

Lasting Power of Attorney FAQs

Yes. Anybody aged 18 or over who has mental capacity can create a Lasting Power of Attorney.
A Property and Financial Affairs LPA can come into effect as soon as it is registered, with your permission. Otherwise it only applies once you no longer have capacity. A Health and Welfare LPA only ever comes into effect when you are no longer able to make decisions for yourself.
It depends on the type. Under a Property and Financial Affairs LPA your attorney can manage bank accounts, pay bills, collect benefits or sell your home. Under a Health and Welfare LPA they can make decisions about your daily care, medical treatment and living arrangements, but only if you cannot do so yourself.
Anyone you trust, such as a family member or friend. They must be over 18, and not bankrupt if you are setting up a Property and Financial Affairs LPA. Choose people who understand your wishes and can carry the responsibility.
Yes, at any time, as long as you have the mental capacity to do so. You need to inform your attorneys and notify the Office of the Public Guardian by sending the original LPA together with a Deed of Revocation.
Registration with the Office of the Public Guardian can take up to 20 weeks, assuming there are no mistakes. Our fully supported service handles everything from start to finish, so avoidable errors never cost you months.
The Office of the Public Guardian currently charges a registration fee of £92 per LPA. If you are on a low income or receive certain benefits, you may qualify for a reduction or exemption.
No, this is one of the most common misunderstandings we come across. Marriage or civil partnership does not automatically give your spouse any legal authority to manage your finances or make care decisions for you if you lose capacity, even for accounts held in your sole name, and in some cases even for joint accounts, once a bank is told a customer has lost capacity. Without a registered LPA, your spouse would have to apply to the Court of Protection for a Deputyship Order to gain that authority, a process that's slower, more expensive, and more restrictive than an LPA.
Power of Attorney, without question, and it isn't close. "Next of kin" is a term people use informally to describe their closest family, but it has no formal legal status in England and Wales, and grants no automatic authority over someone's finances, medical treatment, or care decisions. A registered attorney under a Lasting Power of Attorney has clear, documented legal authority to act; a next of kin, however close the relationship, does not, unless they also happen to hold that Power of Attorney or a Court of Protection order.

Keep exploring

Our other services

Friendly, professional guidance across everything estate planning, always personal and always in plain English.

Online Wills

Personalised one-to-one advice over a video call. A cost-effective way to create a professionally drafted Will.

Learn more

Home Visit Wills

A trained professional meets you in the comfort of your own home to create your Will together.

Learn more

Family & Property Trusts

Protect assets and add flexibility, so your loved ones inherit exactly as you intend.

Learn more

Ready to book?

A little preparation goes a long way. See what's helpful to think about before your appointment.

Preparing for Your Appointment

Decisions in hands you choose.

A friendly chat costs nothing and sorts a lot. Talk to us today, with no obligation and no jargon.

Book an appointmentCall 01934 442030

Home visits across Somerset, or online anywhere in England and Wales.

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