Financial Planning / Life Planning

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Rising cost of living crisis

The rising cost of living is one of the most pressing issues facing many families today. The price of food, energy, fuel and other necessities has risen significantly in recent months. This has made it difficult to make ends meet and has put a strain on many household budgets.

Dealing with divorce

Revolution in family law finally removes the need for blame as a basis for divorce.

Improving your financial health

All of your financial decisions and activities have an effect on your financial health. To help improve your financial health during this period of rising inflation and interest rates, we look at three areas that could help keep you on track to achieving your specific financial goals.

Improve your financial life

Heading into the New Year, it’s the perfect time to take stock of your budget, liabilities and investments – and check them against your financial goals. The New Year brings an opportunity to reflect on the past year and to set new goals for the year ahead.

Planning for the road ahead

Younger generations deserve much more credit for planning ahead and beginning to think about retirement when it will still feel so far away for them, according to new research[1].

Build your own financial plan

Having a financial plan in place early on can make it easier to manage your money further down the line.

Combined finances

Some couples may prefer to keep their finances separate, while others share everything. Whichever method you’ve chosen, when it comes to retirement saving, it’s worth planning together to ensure you’ve made the most of all the allowances and benefits offered to couples.

Gifting generation

Young people have been one of the worst-affected groups from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, particularly in terms of the labour market and mental health outcomes. But it’s their parents and grandparents who are paying the price financially.

Why seek professional financial advice?

Whether you’re starting out or well into your wealth creation journey, professional financial advice help you to define your goals and the path to getting there. It gives you a map and ongoing support to help you take control of your future.

Life goals

Creating a financial roadmap for the future you want involves a close analysis of your personal finances and an assessment of other building blocks. Lifestyle matters look at how to balance work and leisure, how to make smart choices for the future and many other items regarding how to help you enjoy the journey.

10 tips to achieving your financial goals

Even if you have a solid financial plan in place, it still needs to be updated regularly to ensure it reflects any life changes. But what should your priorities focus on now? Is it time to turn your attention to your pension, your ISA, your mortgage, or something else?

Discover a clearer financial future

It’s a common fallacy that only those who are wealthy have any need for professional financial advice. Regardless of how careful you are with your money, dealing with the tricky intricacies of taxation, investments and financial regulations can be difficult for even the most money-conscious of earners.

Age is just a number

We know that age is just a number, and for different people it means different things. It’s also a phrase used by some people who oppose age restrictions. We know that age is just a number, and for different people it means different things. It’s also a phrase used by some people who oppose age restrictions.

Wealth Uplift

Quantifying the value of financial advice has always been a challenge because people who receive financial advice have different characteristics to those who do not. But what if it was now possible to quantify the value of financial advice and isolate a pure ‘advice effect’? This is exactly what the researchers at the International Longevity Centre – UK (ILC) have been able to calculate.

Health fears

Older workers are an invaluable component of the UK workforce, given their extensive industry knowledge and expertise that all colleagues – particularly younger generations – can benefit from.

What’s important to you?

We all have dreams for the future, and many of those dreams require money and planning to make them become a reality. Reaching those milestones starts with setting clear financial goals. Making decisions with a clear endpoint in mind can make it easier to achieve financial security and allow you to enjoy your life to the full, so we’ve put together this brief rundown to help you get closer to your goals today.

For richer, for poorer

The pain of regret after divorce can be long-lasting, especially when you consider the life-long impact divorce has on your children, your finances and your emotions.All the problems, the arguing, the unhappiness, it is all over now that the divorce is final. Right? Not always.

Do your numbers add up

It’s natural we may want to give younger members of our family a financial start in life, especially when we hear about some students graduating with eye-watering levels of debt. If you are able to help your children or grandchildren without risking running out of money yourself, it’s important that you do so effectively.

Different life events

The future may seem far away, but you need to start planning early. Regardless of your goals, there are things you can do to increase your chances of success! We look objectively at your plans to provide solutions that work as your priorities change over the years and you go through different life events.

Who wants to be a millionaire

Parents could make their baby an adult millionaire by starting a pension pot when they are born. Children born this year could become millionaires by their 43rd birthday if their families contribute to a pension for the first 18 years of their lives.

Independence plan

Life can get complicated when you hit your early thirties, which means your finances are starting to get serious.You might be in the middle of countless transitions, like moving up in your career, starting a business, buying a home, getting married, having children…and a whole lot more

Self-employed finances

The number of people running their own businesses has soared since the financial crisis, with a significant number being set up by someone aged over 50. But an unhealthy number of self-employed workers in the UK do not currently save into a pension.

Meaningful insights

Financial fears are creeping into sleeping hours, as new research shows money worries are a top cause of nightmares. Our dreams are how we naturally make sense of all the information and experiences that we unconsciously absorb every day.

Back to the future

Have you ever thought about writing a letter to yourself to describe your ideal future life, long-term life goals and the process of how to plan for them? Imagining what you want your life to be like in the long term when you retire will help you think much further ahead than you might have done before. Research conducted for a new campaign shows that over half (54%) of people plan their lives only days (31%) or weeks (23%) ahead.

Financial fitness

With the Christmas festivities now a distant memory, money matters are firmly on people’s minds this year according to recent research. A poll of more than 3,500 UK adults found the most common money goals are: putting more money into their savings accounts (21%); paying off their credit cards or loans (17%); and starting a regular savings habit (15%). Some people also plan to reduce their household expenses by switching energy suppliers and insurers (9%).

Financial goal-setting

Our life is an endless series of daily choices, and how we manage those choices determines the outcome of our life. We all want financial freedom, but how will we achieve it? Financial goal-setting is the key to building wealth.

Financial resilience

Over three million working couples are classed as ‘double income, no option’ (DINOs), which means they are potentially nancially vulnerable if one of the two loses their earnings.

Do you have a financial back-up plan

Unforeseen life events and circumstances can potentially impact your nances in a number of ways. Hundreds of thousands of people are diagnosed with cancer each year in the UK, and it is becoming more common among those of working age.

Pensions and Divorce

Divorce and pensions are very signi cant.A pension could be a couple’s most valuable matrimonial asset, in some cases worth more than the equity in the family home.As such, it is important that pensions are considered in the nancial settlement if a couple decides to divorce or dissolve their registered civil partnership. All the money you’ve saved into it (except for your basic State Pension) will be taken into account when your assets are divided.

Growing care costs

As part of Budget 2017, Chancellor Philip Hammond announced an extra £2 billion of funding for social care and paved the way for major changes to how people pay for it. But people in the UK are still underestimating the cost of elderly care by £7 billion every year[1], according to new research from Scottish Widows’ independent think tank, the Centre for the Modern Family.

Average age of divorce at all time high

The financial ramifications of a divorce can be devastating.The average age of divorce has reached an all-time high at 45 years and 11 months for men and 43 years and six months for women, according to data released from ONS.

Advice matters

With a burgeoning choice of products on the market, and considering the busy lives we all lead, it can be difficult to find the time to keep fully up to speed with everything that’s going on – especially when you consider that financial products are unlikely to remain the same throughout your lifetime. Obtaining professional financial advice enables you to discuss your objectives, understand which products are available and identify which will best suit your investment needs.

Creating the life you want

Anything is possible when you manage your money the right way.Whatever your goals in life are, careful planning and successful investing of your wealth can help you get there. Investments can offer both risk and return, and, generally, the bigger the risk, the greater the potential return.

Future care costs

With the UK’s population ageing, more people will be living with long-term care needs. Oscar Wilde once said: ‘The tragedy of old age is not that one is old, but that one is young.’ But the good news of rising life expectancy also brings with it the challenge of how we fund our future care costs. The question is: who is responsible for looking after us if we need care in old age?

Inside the mind of a scammer

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is urging over-55s to check that investment opportunities are genuine before they part with their money. This comes as new research, commissioned as part of the FCA’s ScamSmart campaign,
reveals that only two in five (42%) think they know how to spot a fraudulent investment opportunity. Fraudsters are targeting the growing over-55 population because they are more likely to have money to invest.

Securing your financial future

If you really want to give your money the potential to grow and you don’t need immediate access to it, think about investing it rather than just saving. You might want to invest for major life events like retirement or paying your child’s or
grandchild’s university fees.

Untying the knot

A daunting part of a separation or divorce for most couples is sorting out the finances. Financial disputes can be a major stumbling block in the divorce process and could take longer than the divorce itself.

Who will care for you in old age

As a population we are living longer, and with an ageing population the need for care is growing, with the time spent in care also increasing. However, a fifth of the UK (20%) have no idea who will look after them if they have care needs in old age, according to research released from Bupa. Nearly three quarters (73%) think they will have care needs in older age, but only around half (51%) expect their family to care for them.

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Rising cost of living crisis

Dealing with divorce

Improving your financial health

Improve your financial life

Planning for the road ahead

Build your own financial plan

Combined finances

Gifting generation

Why seek professional financial advice?

10 tips to achieving your financial goals

Discover a clearer financial future

Age is just a number

What’s important to you?

For richer, for poorer

Do your numbers add up

Wealth sharing between generations

Different life events

Who wants to be a millionaire

Independence plan

Self-employed finances

Meaningful insights

Back to the future

Financial fitness

Financial goal-setting

Financial resilience

Do you have a financial back-up plan

Pensions and Divorce

Growing care costs

Average age of divorce at all time high

Creating the life you want

Future care costs

Inside the mind of a scammer

Securing your financial future

Untying the knot

Who will care for you in old age

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