Financial planning
The groundwork everything else sits on — and whether you need help with it.
Before pensions, investments or tax planning make any difference, a few things have to be in place: knowing what's coming in and going out, having something set aside for when life goes wrong, and doing things in an order that doesn't waste money. This topic covers that groundwork, then tackles the question people actually want answered — whether it's worth paying someone to help, and how to tell a good adviser from a salesperson.
What a plan actually contains, and why the process matters more than the document.
Where to put the next pound. The sequence that stops the most expensive mistakes.
How much, where to keep it, and why it shouldn't be invested.
A guaranteed return against an uncertain one — and why the answer changed when rates rose.
Often no. Sometimes emphatically yes. Here's how to tell which you are.
How to check someone is who they say they are, what to ask, and what to walk away from.
What the process looks like, how fees are structured, and what you should expect for the money.