A horizontal cover image featuring a purple coloured background. The title ‘How paraplanners can transform women’s financial fortunies’ appears in large text on right of the image. Left of centre, there’s cut-out headshot of Sam Secomb of Women’s Wealth. Toward the bottom right-hand corner there are cut-out headshots of Susan Hope of Scottish Widows and Sam Tonks of Canaccord Wealth. At the top of the image, the word ‘Online’ is shown in purple text within a yellow-green-coloured rectangular block followed by ‘1pm on 25 June 2025’ and ‘1 hour CPD’ in white text on a purple background.

Now don’t take this the wrong way, but is there a chance that last time you put together recommendations or financial plans for a woman, the approach was unknowingly influenced by assumptions that generally apply to a man?

As paraplanners, we have the power to directly influence financial outcomes that are better for women – whether we’re reviewing fact finds, drafting recommendations, or creating financial plans.

But are we truly creating plans for the individuals in front of us? Or are we unwittingly relying on conventional thinking and assumptions which are actually more likely to be rooted in men’s experiences rather than women’s?

It matters because, more often than not, women’s financial journeys follow distinct and different paths compared to men. So to deliver genuinely effective financial planning, it’s vital we need to understand the differences and how to adapt our approach.

A chance to challenge your thinking in just one lunch hour

Join us online at 1.00 pm on Wednesday 25 June to explore how paraplanners can better understand and address the unique financial planning needs of women.

We’ve invited Sam Tonks, senior paraplanner at Canaccord Wealth, to host this conversation with two fantastic guests: Sam Secomb, chartered financial planner at Women’s Wealth, and Susan Hope, business development director at Scottish Widows.

Together, they’ll explore women’s distinctive financial journeys and the stark disparities that exist – including the startling 30 per cent gender pension gap – and ask how paraplanners can help create better financial outcomes for female clients.

During this lunch-hour Assembly we expect to

What can you expect to take away?

You’ll leave this Assembly with actionable insights that we’re certain will help you improve your paraplanning approach, challenge conventional thinking and assumptions, and – most importantly – help deliver more tailored financial plans for your female clients.

Just as importantly, this session will give you practical tools and ideas so you are able to exercise the power you have to improve financial planning outcomes for women through your work everyday.

Sound like a good idea? Save your spot now.

Promotional image for "An informal Assembly for outsourced paraplanners". An online gathering in Zoom from 1-2 pm on Thursday 19 June 2025.

Are you an outsourced paraplanner?

Whether you’re the only employee of your paraplanning practice, or you lead a paraplanning powerhouse with employees and a hefty bank of clients, outsourced paraplanners share lots of things in common.

You just do.

But here’s the thing: despite the growing number of outsourced paraplanners in the UK these days, opportunities to get together to talk only about things that matter in the outsourced world, are surprisingly few and far between.

Switch off. Show up. Join in. 

So, if you’re an outsourced paraplanner, here’s our invitation: at 1pm on Thursday 19 June 2025, set your notifications to ‘do not disturb’, click on the Zoom link in your event invitation and gather with other outsourced paraplanners across the UK for an hour of conversation, ideas and practical insights.

There’s nothing to prepare. Just come along ready to share your answer to one question: 

‘What’s on your mind today?’

Spaces are limited. To save a spot hit ‘Book Event’ and look out for the calendar invitation in your inbox.

A horizontal cover image featuring an orange background. The title ‘A guide to annuity essentials for paraplanners: part two’ appears in large text on right of the image. Left of centre, there’s a headshot of Rob Powell of Standard Life. The words ‘Online: 1pm on 14 May 2025’ appear at the top right of half of the image above the title.

Remember our Assembly on annuity essentials back in March?

Over the course of one lunch-hour, Andy Powell from Standard Life walked us through the basics of annuities – how they work, the differences between pension and purchased life annuities, and the kinds of options available like inflation protection and guarantee periods.

Now it’s time to take things further.

Join us at 1pm on Wednesday 14 May 2025 for the second of Andy’s annuity two-part series, when the annuities expert returns to talk more about how annuities can feature as part of your clients’ retirement income strategies.

For instance, among the practical planning tips that go beyond the basics, are things like:

With annuity rates remaining attractive, this is the ideal moment to brush up on an option that’s enjoying a bit of a renaissance in retirement planning.

So whether you’re already recommending annuities regularly, or just getting to grips with them, this session will offer practical approaches you can use right away.

Plus there’s one hour’s worth of CPD available.

Fancy coming along? Save your spot now.

When it comes to the idea of innovation are you more likely to radiate Ted Lasso energy rather than Roy Kent? More Bandit than Bluey? Or put another way (that doesn’t rely on eclectic TV viewing habits): does the prospect of change make you feel more ‘Yeah!’ than ‘Meh!’? 

The reason we ask is that we were inspired by paraplanner Zara Okoro’s recent thought-provoking article in Professional Paraplanner all about innovation. So we invited Zara from Abacus Associates, who’s also a PFS Paraplanner Panel member, to share her thoughts on how paraplanners can adapt rather than risk getting left behind.

Alongside Zara, we were joined by PSA Financial Services’ head of paraplanning, Ceetal Katechia, to join in the conversation. Ceetal has bags of practical experience in creating team environments in which new ideas flourish.

Together with host Richard Allum, this Assembly asked what innovation actually looks like, whether it’s always a good thing, what fuels it, and how can you influence it when you’re not the decision-maker?

It’s an Assembly that’s all about how you can embrace innovation and shape our profession rather than be subject to changes happening around you.

What can you expect when you listen?

You’ll come away with practical ideas to try out, whether you’re looking to improve your processes and workflow, make better use of existing tools and tech, or create space for bigger changes in your work.

Most of all, this is a chance to step back from day-to-day demands and take a few moments for yourself to think about how even small changes can shape your role and influence the direction of your career in paraplanning.

How often do you recommend investment bonds compared to ISAs or GIAs for non-pension money these days?

If it’s rarely or not at all, that’s not so surprising.

Because bonds seem to have become a bit neglected planning option in recent years haven’t they?

It’s a trend which means that paraplanners can be forgiven for being a bit rusty when it comes to the latest investment bond knowledge.

Yet they’re an option which offers plenty of planning potential. So we thought it was about time we hosted an online Assembly where you can rekindle your bond with bonds.

So you’re invited to join us online at 1pm on Wednesday 16th April for a lunch-hour refresher on the essentials of investment bonds.

To guide us, we’ll be joined by bond expert, M&G’s Barrie Dawson, who plans to cover:

Whether bonds are something you’re just getting to grips with, or you just need a refresher, this Assembly will offer clarity about when and how bonds bonds can feature in your planning recommendations.

Learn, fix, share

It’s an Assembly, so feel free to ask questions and share ideas with other paraplanners in the chat. Oh and CPD certificates will be available for all attendees (just look out for the link at the conclusion of this Assembly).

Book your spot now.

Sound interesting? Then tap ‘Book event’ to save your spot and we’ll see you there!

Promotional image for "An informal Assembly for outsourced paraplanners". An online gathering in Zoom from 1-2 pm on Thursday 24 April 2025.

Are you an outsourced paraplanner?

Whether you’re the only employee of your paraplanning practice, or you lead a paraplanning powerhouse with employees and a hefty bank of clients, outsourced paraplanners share lots of things in common.

You just do.

But here’s the thing: despite the growing number of outsourced paraplanners in the UK these days, opportunities to get together to talk only about things that matter in the outsourced world, are surprisingly few and far between.

Switch off. Show up. Join in. 

So, if you’re an outsourced paraplanner, here’s our invitation: at 1pm on Thursday 24 April 2025, set your notifications to ‘do not disturb’, click on the Zoom link in your event invitation and gather with other outsourced paraplanners across the UK for an hour of conversation, ideas and practical insights.

There’s nothing to prepare. Just come along ready to share your answer to one question: 

‘What’s on your mind today?’

Spaces are limited. To save a spot hit ‘Book Event’ and look out for the calendar invitation in your inbox.

If you don’t feel all that confident about annuities, you’re not alone.

Once the default choice of guaranteed income in retirement for generations of UK pension savers, for a whole bunch of reasons, annuities had been falling out of favour for year and years.

Why annuities matter again

Higher interest rates and inflation have led to a revival of interest in securing certainty of income in retirement. 

The trouble is that an emerging generation of paraplanners – and a sizeable chunk of the more established paraplanning population – had barely any recent experience of annuities.

So we invited Andy Powell from Standard Life to join us to explain:

Tailoring annuities to client needs

During this Assembly, Andy explores the different ways annuities can be designed to meet different requirements. For instance:

Andy also covers newer developments like fixed-term annuities and platform-based solutions that let clients combine secure income with investment flexibility without splitting pension assets across different providers.

For paraplanners, perhaps one of the most valuable takeaways is understanding enhanced terms where, in contrast to other insurance products, health conditions actually increase and not decrease income.

This practical session will give you paraplanners useful knowledge to help clients weigh up their retirement income options. So why not watch or listen now?

The way pensions are treated for inheritance tax (IHT) is set for a big shake up in April 2027 when unused pension funds will count as part of a client’s estate and become liable to IHT.

In preparation for the change, the government announced a consultation on the liability, reporting and payment of IHT at last October’s Budget.

That consultation ended late in January 2025. But what are its conclusions likely to be? And what do paraplanners need to know so you, your firm and its clients are ready when the reforms go live?

What do you and your clients need to know?

Those are the questions that M&G‘s head of technical, Les Cameron, addressed when he joined us for an online Assembly to explores what the changes could mean for paraplanners and your clients (or clients of clients if you’re outsourced or freelancing).

What you can expect to take away from this Assembly?

Together with Assembly host Richard Allum, Les shared his thoughts on how the new IHT framework will affect pension death benefits after 2027. The conversation to covered things like:

Stop press: post-event answers to questions raised in the chat

There were loads of questions from paraplanners in the chat but, because we ran out of time, Les posted his responses to them in this thread at The Big Tent.

Promotional image for "An informal Assembly for outsourced paraplanners". An online gathering in Zoom from 10-11 am on Thursday 10 February 2025.

Are you an outsourced paraplanner?

Whether you’re the only employee of your paraplanning practice, or you lead a paraplanning powerhouse with employees and a hefty bank of clients, outsourced paraplanners share lots of things in common.

You just do.

But here’s the thing: despite the growing number of outsourced paraplanners in the UK these days, opportunities to get together to talk only about things that matter in the outsourced world, are surprisingly few and far between.

Switch off. Show up. Join in. 

So, if you’re an outsourced paraplanner, here’s our invitation: at 10am on Thursday 27 February 2025, set your notifications to ‘do not disturb’, click on the Zoom link in your event invitation and gather with other outsourced paraplanners across the UK for an hour of conversation, ideas and practical insights.

There’s nothing to prepare. Just come along ready to share your answer to one question: 

‘What’s on your mind today?’

Spaces are limited. To save a spot hit ‘Book Event’ and look out for the calendar invitation in your inbox.

Do you find that, even though you spend each and every day working on financial plans for clients, you hardly ever get mixed up in protection? 

Well you’re not alone. Because despite being a foundational long-term financial security, for paraplanners, the topic of protection often takes a back seat compared to consideration of investment and retirement strategies.

Which invites the question: what happens to that carefully crafted financial plan if a client’s income falls or they’re faced with the financial consequences of a bout of serious illness or worse? 

In other words, what does every self-respecting paraplanner need to know to make sure their clients plans don’t unravel when the unexpected happens unexpectedly?

Protection: get up to speed

To find out tune into the recording of this Assembly held online on 5 February 2025 when Jon Hall, protection specialist at Scottish Widows, joined us to explore protection essentials for paraplanners.

Whether you’re new to protection or need a refresher, the recording of this session will help you understand:

What you’ll discover when you tune in

Jon brings real-world experience as both a protection specialist and former adviser focusing on high-net-worth and complex cases. He shares insights on how paraplanners can help build protection into the advice process, even in firms where it hasn’t traditionally been a focus.

Straight after the event, Jon popped over to The Big Tent and created a thread where he answered questions that paraplanners had raised during the gathering but he hadn’t had time to answer live. Be sure to take a look at his responses.