Selecting non-familial guardians for our children

[eversomuch]

After a lot of thought, and ruling out family members as possible guardians for our two children (27m and 7m), we have decided to ask some good friends of ours if they would be willing to take on the responsibility of caring for them in the event that something happens to both me and DH and we are not able to care for them ourselves.

I'm sure we'll have a lot to discuss, but I thought I'd ask if there's anything in particular that we should keep in mind and be sure to address. Thanks.

You may want a solicitor to advise on this...

We have 1 familial and 1 non familial guardian appointed for our DD should anything happen to both of us. We chose to get qualified legal advice to ensure our will was valid and our wishes clear, but the only things we needed to be specific about was the age at which our children should inherit the estate ( and therefore how long it would be held in trust) and who were to be the trustees of the estate. We chose our guardians to be trustees, but I believe this can be different if you wish. We were also advised to think about writing a letter of wishes which while not legally binding would give guardians some guidance as to how we would like our children raised, ie religion, schooling or anything else that we felt strongly about.