Len Goodman is backing a campaign which encourages people to leave a gift in their wills to charity.

The former Strictly Come Dancing judge is supporting Remember A Charity Week for the second time, and said he has now updated his own will to leave a charitable gift.

He said: “Since last year I’ve had the chance to meet some of the fantastic people working hard for the charitable causes that Remember A Charity supports.

“I’ve since updated my will to include a charitable gift after my family has been taken care of – it’s such a simple, easy thing to do that makes an enormous difference.

“Hopefully this week will inspire more people to do the same – just think what we could achieve if we all made that small change to our will.”

At the kick-off of Remember A Charity Week, the consortium of over 200 UK registered charities revealed that cancer and health charities continue to receive the most legacy income, with Macmillan Cancer Support, Cancer Research UK and British Heart Foundation all among the top five.

Figures show that last year a record-breaking £3 billion was donated to charity via gifts in wills.

Remember A Charity director Rob Cope said: “Over the last 10 years we’ve seen an incredible number of people choosing to leave a portion of their estate to their favourite charity in their will, which is wonderful to see.

“That said, we are a very charitable nation so it’s surprising that just six in 100 people leave a gift in their will, and it would be amazing if we could see this number continue to rise.

“Any gift – no matter how big or small – makes an enormous difference in helping charities to continue their incredible work, and what a wonderful way to ensure your legacy can live on after you’ve gone.”