Financial planning in the UK has improved immensely over the past few decades. As professionalism and standards continue to improve, clients can be more confident than ever of successful and fulfilling outcomes.

While profiling leading advice firms in the South West and Wales, this evolution was at the forefront of our minds. At Citywire, we are lucky enough to speak to advice pioneers on a regular basis and discuss the changes that are leading to better relationships with money.

We sometimes wonder how aware the general public is of the quality of advice on offer, and this is what we have set out to examine in this year’s round table discussion among leading advisers from the South West and Wales. First, we looked at how we can educate people on the benefits of financial advice. Second, and perhaps more fundamentally, we also wanted to look at what can be done to introduce people to basic financial concepts. This education should not just be limited to schools, colleges and universities.

Investing is a vital part of the puzzle, too. Cryptocurrency and meme stocks have grabbed headlines recently, introducing a new raft of enthusiasts to the party. We asked what this means for personal finance.

We hope this project can help inform people of the opportunities and risks that are inherent in investing, and how finances can be managed in a way that encourages successful long-term outcomes.

Ian Horne
Head of Audience Development – UK

BITE-SIZED EDUCATION

While much has been said about the need for young people to learn the A, B, Cs of money, introducing people to basic financial concepts should extend beyond schools, colleges and universities.

For Darrell Stone, head of partnership development at Continuum, the best approach is to break it down into chunks – bite-sized pieces of information that will appeal to people at different stages of their lives. At certain points, however, a set piece education event may make more sense, according to Nathan Long, a senior analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.

What should form the foundation of financial education? And how should it be laid? These and other questions were up for debate at our roundtable event for advisers in the South West and Wales, where Stone and Long were joined by Natasha O'Neill, head paraplanner and chartered financial planner at Strategic Solutions Financial Planners, Liam Fowler, chartered financial planner and investment analyst at Heron House Financial Management, Lee Dineen, senior vice president at PIMCO, and Ian Horne, head of UK audience development at Citywire.

Financial Education and Awareness

Technology has become so ingrained in our everyday lives – not least during the past 18 months – that it comes as little surprise that advisers see it as a key tool in financial education and awareness.

At our fourth 2021 regional round table organised by PIMCO and Citywire, advisers from the South West of England and Wales outlined an array of initiatives they are participating in to help increase financial literacy and narrow the advice gap.

DELEGATES

lee dineen
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENt, PIMCO
darrell stone
HEAD OF PARTNERSHIP DEVELOPMENT, CONTINUUM
Liam fowler
TRUSTEE, CHARTERED FINANCIAL PLANNER AND INVESTMENT ANALYSt, HERON HOUSE FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT
natasha o’neill
HEAD PARAPLANNER, CHARTERED FINANCIAL PLANNER, STRATEGIC SOLUTIONS CHARTERED FINANCIAL PLANNERS
Nathan long
SENIOR ANALYST, HARGREAVES lansdown

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