FAQs

We hold meetings either at our offices or online using Zoom or Microsoft Teams. We recommend that your initial meeting is held at our offices so we can get to know each other best. If you have difficulties with mobility, we can meet at your home or another suitable location. Please call our helpful reception team, and they will guide you.

We do not charge for an initial meeting. It is designed to enable us to understand your requirements, explain how we work, and decide whether our services are right for you. If it makes sense to work together, we will explain our charges clearly and in full so you can decide on whether to proceed.

Firstly, if you are married or in a relationship, you’ll need to bring each other. We’ll be talking about your plan to achieve your life goals, and it’s something you’ll want to do together. You’ll also need to bring your financial documents so we can get a full picture of your situation. We’ll send you a list of the items we’ll need before the meeting.

We recommend that you set aside up to two hours for your initial meeting.

No, of course not. You are free to make your decision in your own time. We won’t put you under any pressure at all.

Call our helpful reception team on 01509 610472 to arrange your meeting.

We have a limited amount of on-site parking; please call our Welcome Team and they will reserve a space if they can. There is street parking available in Rectory Place (LE11 1UW) for up to two hours, as well as several local car parks. The nearest one is in The Rushes (LE11 5BG), which is less than 100 metres from our offices.

Yes. We have ground-floor offices and access to bathroom facilities. Please let us know in advance so that we can book your meeting room and have our ramp ready.

Yes. Let us know ahead of your meeting so we can make sure that we provide a wonderful experience for you and support you with sign language, interpretation or documents in large print. We can prepare a Braille version of the documents if you request this with us at least two weeks in advance.

We will also convert our communications into audio if this is preferred. We will provide some adaptations without notice so you can still attend your meeting if you haven’t let us know, but it will be restricted to the resources available on site.

Yes, we are proud to have always offered completely independent advice that is focused on helping you achieve your goals in the most effective way possible.

We are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. You can find us on the FCA Register here.

We have a team of financial planners who will help you if your usual planner is unavailable. We keep great notes of all our meetings so we can quickly understand your situation in these circumstances.

At your first meeting with your financial planner, we will help you complete your personal Financial Road Map®. There are three parts to this exercise: what’s most important to you, the goals you wish to achieve, and your current financial position. Our clients tell us that this meeting is hugely helpful as the first step in building a long-term plan.

Our charges are explained in our Terms of Business. We will give you a specific quotation based on your own circumstances and requirements during, or soon after, your initial meeting with your financial planner.

We charge a fixed fee to create your plan, and we will tell you exactly how much it will be at your initial meeting or soon after.

If you decide to engage our services thereafter, we will charge a percentage of the assets we manage for you, subject to a minimum annual amount. This fee is designed to cover all future progress meetings and related work.

We may charge additional fees for some types of work that fall outside of our normal service. We’ve always been transparent about our fees, and we will never charge you without your prior agreement.

For most types of financial planning work, financial planners cannot charge or receive commissions under current legislation. All our fees are charged directly to you, or deducted from your investment portfolio with your agreement.

For some types of work, for example, life and health insurance policies, we may receive a commission from the provider on the commencement of the plan. If so, we will tell you the amount and agree on whether we will refund the commission to you or retain it to cover the cost of our services.

Most forms of financial advice are exempt from VAT, and we are not registered for VAT.

The management of our clients’ investments is a significant part of our service. We will assist you to create, manage and maintain an investment portfolio designed to deliver the returns you require to achieve your goals.

Yes, we are authorised to advise on pension transfers and hold the Pension Transfer Gold Standard as evidence of our competence in this area.

Yes, we have a mortgage adviser who will provide you with independent mortgage advice.