Consumers in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are being encouraged to start their autumn with a free, personal finance guidance session available for booking before, during and after CISI Financial Planning Week 7-11 October.
The free, hour long, confidential sessions worth up to £500 are being offered by CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNERTM (CFPTM) professionals who are giving their time again this year on a pro-bono basis, offering consumers a helping hand to achieve financial well-being, resilience and life goal planning. It will offer a chance for members of the UK public to work through and discuss their life goals and then the financial planner will help plan how to achieve them.
The annual campaign, organised by the not-for-profit professional body the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI) is a national initiative to help improve the financial fitness of the UK public, while highlighting the fact that CFPTM practitioners represent the pinnacle of professionalism for their knowledge, skills and integrity.
The CFPTM professional’s ethos is to support consumers in shaping practical, easy-to-understand, holistic financial solutions for every life stage.
The CISI is encouraging consumers to sign up to the free sessions with a local CFPTM professional or other financial planner via cisi.org/findaplanner or by calling 020 7645 0777.
With financial planning offices across the UK offering surgeries, the aim is to highlight the benefits of financial planning, which differs to financial advice i.e. financial planning helps people to organise their money to achieve specific life goals, whereas “financial advice” focuses more on financial services products. The focus of the 2019 campaign specifically for those members of the public who have a pension but don’t have a financial plan.
The free, one-hour money management sessions Financial planning firms will be offering:
- Free consultation surgeries, either in person, via skype or over the phone
- ‘Ask a Planner’ online sessions
- Talks to schools across the country about the merits of the financial planning profession as a career
CFP professionals are supremely qualified to offer financial guidance not only to pre or post retirees, but to anyone at differing life stages.
Jacqueline Lockie CFPTM, Chartered FCSI and CISI Head of Financial Planning said: “Our CFPTM professionals are delighted to help all consumers, no matter what their age or financial circumstances, during these free sessions, which can be booked before, during and after 7 – 11 October. CFPTM qualified professionals in particular offer a 360-degree, holistic approach, with the ethos very much focused on putting life goals and financial well-being first. Their designation means they approach these important sessions with integrity and sensitivity, aiming to do the right thing for the consumer.
“These free sessions are for all age groups and all personal circumstances. For example, Age UK recently estimated that the 90,000 retirees whom the FCA stated are withdrawing 8% or more from their pension pots post pension freedom reforms since 2015, may face the risk of running out of money in a market downturn, unless they reduce the amount they are taking out. Our CFP professionals can help these individuals during these confidential sessions to determine how to plan for a more sustained income stream.
“Financial Planning Week is also a great opportunity for employers throughout the UK to encourage their staff to take advantage of these free personal financial guidance sessions and to help them plan for the life they want.”
Amyr Rocha-Lima MSc CFP™ Chartered MSCI, Partner of Holland Hahn & Wills said: “As Financial Planners our job is to help people achieve their life goals. As CERTIFIED FINANCINAL PLANNERSTM, we don’t just recommend products, we look at every aspect of someone’s life, their choices, their dreams and then build a plan that helps them achieve them. In 2018 we were delighted to take part in Financial Planning Week and were able to help someone who had never even considered the need for a financial plan. Whilst they were both in earning good money, they were lacking clarity around their finances. I’m really happy that we were able to help them get on the right financial pathway to achieve their goals!”
The consumer financial planning theme is also highlighted the week before Financial Planning Week on a global level with World Financial Planning Day 2 October, organised by the FPSB. This complements the International Organisation of Securities Commission’s (IOSCO) global World Investor Week (WIW) 30 September – 6 October, a global campaign to raise awareness of the importance of investor education and protection, encouraging 186,000 CFP professionals worldwide to join together to help.