The council has been forced to reveal the names of those whose estates were passed to the King’s portfolio of land, property and assets after dying without a will.

Nearly £120,000 has been passed to the King’s portfolio of land, property, and assets after Oldham residents died without a will, a Guardian investigation revealed last year.

The council confirmed that the details of people who died with estates worth a total of £119,721.86 were passed to the Duchy of Lancaster’s solicitors Farrer & Co from 2020 to 2022.

In most of the country, the assets of those who die without a will or next of kin are transferred to the Treasury, with the money spent on things like public services.

The process is known as "Bona Vacantia" – Latin for "vacant goods" and is the name given to ownerless property, which passes to the Crown by law.

However, a legal quirk dating back centuries means those who die in the county palatine of Lancaster — including much of modern-day Greater Manchester, Liverpool, and Lancashire — have their estates passed to the King’s Duchy of Lancaster. Accounts show the King earned more than £27m from his private estate last year.

 In Oldham borough, the area stretches out as far east as Lees – meaning those on the eastern edges of the modern Oldham borough, such as in Saddleworth, do not have their estates passed to the King.

Council forced to reveal names

In November, The Oldham Times asked the council to reveal the names and details of those whose estates had been passed to the King.

In most of the rest of the country, the names of those who die without a will are published on the government’s Unclaimed Estates List on its website.

However, the council refused to give the details of estates it had passed to the Duchy in response to a Freedom of Information Act request – saying that it could “facilitate the commission of an offence” and lead to fraudulent claims on estates.

When asked to review its decision, the council – responding in January – said it would additionally be applying "personal information" and "confidential information" exemptions. The Oldham Times appealed this decision to the Information Commissioner.

Now, months later, the Information Commissioner's Office has forced the council to disclose the names, dates of birth, dates of death, and locations of death for those whose estates were passed to the Duchy between 2020 and 2022.

In an 11-page decision notice, the ICO said a failure of the council to provide the information after the order could result in it being held in contempt of court.

The names of those whose estates were passed to the Duchy between 2020 and 2022 are:

  • Eileen Lawrence, born April 9, 1916; died November 28, 2007 in Oldham.
  • Frank Handley, born March 3, 1932; died November 14, 2010 in Oldham.
  • Kevin Wood, born January 1, 1940; died July 7, 2006 in Oldham.
  • Savka Radakovic, born January 4, 1923; died September 13, 2020 in Oldham.
  • Mildred Stott, born October 22, 1922; died February 22, 2017 in Oldham.
  • Stephania Liedtke, born May 19, 1925; died February 16, 2015 in Oldham.
  • Helen Scholes, born June 10, 1923; died September 25, 2018 in Oldham.
  • Barbara Barron, born September 29, 1951; died May 3, 2020 in Oldham.

The council separately confirmed no names had been passed to the Duchy in 2023 or 2024 so far.

A council spokesperson said the council did not wish to provide any further comment.