Latest Editions

• 

  DECEMBER 2020

  THIS ISSUE

  INCLUDING: VCT SPECIAL REPORT. An 8-page special including a Guide to VCTs, illustrating the benefits of VCTS and how they can be used as a powerful planning tool for clients in a variety of different scenarios, a Q&A on VCTs and their importance in supporting UK smaller businesses, and we talk to paraplanners about when and how they use VCTs and with which clients.

  CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE DIGITAL COPY

  In this issue:

  Paraplanner community

  In this issue’s Paraplanner Profile, Aishling Costello, paraplanner with Fidelius, tells Rob Kingsbury how getting involved, asking questions and stepping outside her comfort zone is the way she has progressed her knowledge and experience of paraplanning

  Dan Atkinson, head of Technical, Paradigm Norton Financial Planning reflects on an unprecedented year and what it has taught him

  Rob Kingsbury catches up with Blake Ellis, PP cover star in October 2018 and now director and technical paraplanner at outsourced firm Prudent Paraplanning

  And focusing on motivation, Michelle Hoskin, managing director of Standards International asks what personal development positives have been learned in 2020 which can be carried forward into the New Year?

  Technical and tax

  We ask John Calverley, chief economist of newly launched investment support firm Tricio Investment Advisors, why he believes there are five reasons to be worried about inflation

  The Brand Financial Training team examine the High Income Child Benefit Charge, focussing on the detail that can see families become liable to pay this charge and options to help avoid it.

  The Investment Committee

  In this issue, our writers look at:

  • How investing in renewable energy can combine financial returns with positive impact
  • Three investment areas which could prove interesting in 2021
  • Why ESG research, engagement and analysis puts it at the pinnacle of active investing, according to one proponent
  • And our sector analysis looks at why separating the wheat from the chaff when investing in small-cap funds has never been as important as it is today

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• 

  NOVEMBER 2020

  THIS ISSUE

  INCLUDING: Business Property Relief Social  Eight pages of insight into when and how BPR may be used within financial and tax planning and with which clients it tends to resonate, including a three-page guide to all things BPR.

  CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE DIGITAL COPY

  In this issue:

  Paraplanner community

  For our Paraplanner Profile we talk to Kim Bendall, whose new company offers paraplanning, practice management, training and consultancyWe also catch up with Jade Connolly, PP cover star in October 2015, talking to her about her career progression from paraplanner to M&A adviser

  And… Rebecca Tuck talks about moving firm during the Coronavirus crisis to become a paraplanner with Paradigm Norton Financial Planning

  Technical and tax

  Stephen McPhillips, technical sales director, Dentons Pension Management, considers pension scheme death benefits and provides an update following the recent Supreme Court Judgment.

  The Brand Financial Training team looks at tax quirks that apply to discretionary trusts.

  Intelliflo’s Richard Wake looks at how technology can facilitate the suitability report writing process

  Development

  Michelle Hoskin plots a course that can help firms move from the position where one or two people in isolation are making all the decisions to an entire team working for the benefit of the business

  The Investment Committee

  In this issue, our writers look at the structural changes in the UK due to Covid-19 and what this means for investors; whether gold can really be a long-term investment from this point onwards; and whether central bank policy has created a culture of dependency which will culminate in the breaking of the markets.

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• 

  OCTOBER 2020

  THIS ISSUE

  DOWNLOAD your copy of the October 2020 issue of Professional Paraplanner HERE: Professional Paraplanner Magazine October 2020

  Paraplanner profile

  In early September 2020, outsourced paraplanning firm Plan Works relaunched following founder Nathan Fryer being joined by experienced paraplanner Siân Davies Cole. Rob Kingsbury spoke to them about partnering up, what they will be offering financial planning businesses and their plans to grow the business over the next few years.

  Viewpoint

  In an honest and open article, Damian Zhang, paraplanner at Foster Denovo, describes his experience with mental health issues and provides practical advice for individuals and for employers in understanding and dealing with the issues that can arise

  White paper writing

  Recently, Dan Atkinson, head of Technical at Paradigm Norton, had the opportunity to co-author a white paper on potential tax increases, aimed at helping the firm’s clients to understand the potential impact on their financial plans. Here he describes the process.

  Exam lockdown

  Lockdown’s effect on this year’s exams meant candidates suffered from cancelled and re-arranged exams, while issues with remote invigilation for some CII exams also caused headaches. We spoke to Ann Mora, operations manager at Brand Financial Training, about what happened and how things look now.

  Team talk

  At the heart of any good business and work stream is good communication and… collaboration. We need more of it, says Michelle Hoskin, managing director Standards International

  Professional body

  CISI’s Jackie Lockie finds that writing a financial plan using the client’s own words doesn’t always provide a defined picture of what the client wants and an actionable strategy

  TAX PLANNING SPECIAL
  Game plan

  Is the current market, economic uncertainty and noise around potential tax hikes causing clients concern around tax planning and affecting firms’ advice? We spoke to paraplanners about their experiences

  IHT planning with a power of attorney

  Jessica Franks, head of Tax, Octopus Investments, shoes how clients can achieve their estate planning objectives when a power of attorney is in place

  The LTA charge

  Should the Lifetime Allowance charge be avoided at all costs or are there circumstances where it is worth the client paying the charge? Dave Downie, technical manager, Standard Life

  THE INVESTMENT COMMITTEE

  Certainty of income

  David Hambidge, director of multi-assets at Premier Miton, considers the problems in producing a sustainable income in a world where uncertainty rules

  Japan – what next?

  Darius McDermott, managing director, FundCalibre, looks at the legacy of Japan’s Prime Minister Abe Shinzo and following his announced resignation, where there may be potential concerns for investors

  Destructive capitalism

  Does recovery from Covid-19’s impact require more of a Darwinian than a Keynesian approach? David Coombs, fund manager, Rathbone Multi-Asset Portfolio Funds takes a view

  Sector considerations

  This issue the Fund Calibre team look at the UK Equity market

   

   

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• 

  SEPTEMBER 2020

  THIS ISSUE

  DOWNLOAD your copy of the September 2020 issue of Professional Paraplanner HERE: Professional Paraplanner September 2020

  In the issue you’ll find the following:

  Profiles

  For this issue’s profile, we break from our normal paraplanner interviewee, talking instead to Jackie Boylan, Head of FundsNetwork, about the milestone, her career, diversity in financial services, and developments with the platform

  We have 5 minutes with…  Steve Bailey, director, ATEB Consulting, talking about the compliance consultancy,  good compliance practice, tips for FCA visits and the firm’s work for the FCA on Section 166 reviews

  Viewpoint is from Micheala Hawkins, administrator with outsourced paraplanning firm Navigatus, who talks about failing a number of exams before she adapted her studying process and broke through the barriers that had been holding her back from achieving her potential

  Technical articles include:

  Pension death benefits: Looking at reasons why an individual might look beyond their spouse in respect of the beneficiaries of their pension

  SSAS: A case study covering how a business owner used good financial advice and planning to help expand his family business

  Pensions tax: Examining new rules in respect of Tapered Annual Allowance and Carry Forward that came into effect in April 2020

  And for our TDQ: Development article this issue, the Brand Financial Training team compare the options and benefits between setting up a business as a sole trader or as a limited company

  Comment

  We have Industry comment from Matt Lonsdale, relationship manager at BNY Mellon’s Pershing EMEA, discussing the future of financial planning

  Michelle Hoskin, MD of Standards International poses questions paraplanners should be asking of themselves at this crucial time for many businesses

  And Caroline Stuart, director of Sparrow Paraplanning and PFS Board member, considers whether the Coronavirus crisis could actually turn out to be good for financial planning firms

  The Investment committee

  Premier-Miton’s Simon Evan-Cook observes that many fund managers say they dabbled with stocks when young, buying companies with products they knew but most also admit they got their fingers burned

  Darius McDermott, managing director, FundCalibre, looks at income investing and whether dividend cuts could be a good thing for the market

  While Rathbone’s David Coombs believes commercial property investment as we know it is about to change – possibly significantly

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• 

  JULY/AUGUST 2020

  THIS ISSUE

  CLICK HERE TO ACCESS ONLINE

  OR DOWNLOAD IT AS A PDF HERE: ProfessionalParaplanner-July-Aug 2020

  Inside our biggest issue yet you’ll find:

  All the winners from our 2020 AWARDS

  The Paraplanner Awards

  Winners of the six Paraplanner awards including interviews

  The Provider Awards

  The companies nominated by you as the best in their category

  Paraplanner profile

  Editor Rob Kingsbury talks to Alistair Cartwright, winner of this year’s Paraplanner of the Year (in-house) award, about being promoted, his views on paraplanning and studying beyond the usual qualifications

  Viewpoint

  Understanding your client’s capacity for loss

  Tax

  John Humphreys, IHT specialist, WAY Investment Solutions, uses a case study to illustrate the disadvantages of putting off tax planning

  TDQ: Tax

  A look at the tax position of self-employed taxpayers whose income is affected by the Coronavirus lockdown

  Being a happy human

  Will we enter the ‘new normal’ able to feel better about ourselves or will we revert to our old ways?

  Pensions

  Practical tips for paraplanners needing to research SSAS providers

  Professional Body

  A book on resilience has Jacqueline Lockie, head of Financial Planning, CISI, re-assessing motivation and what it means for paraplanners.

  The Investment Committee

  Sector considerations: Correlation

  Crunching the numbers in respect of correlation of asset classes during the C-19 crisis

  Where next for income?

  Charles Luke, Aberdeen Standard Investments, considers income investing during the current pandemic and what is affecting the market outlook

  Avoiding Waterloo

  Current corporate bond markets offer rare opportunities but managers warn there will be clear winners and losers in the sector

  PLUS our regulars: Test your Knowledge, Parameters, data download and CPD

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• 

  JUNE 2020

  THIS ISSUE

  CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE ISSUE ONLINE

  OR DOWNLOAD IT AS A PDF HERE: Professional Paraplanner_JUNE 2020

  What you’ll find inside:

  Paraplanner profile

  Katherine Harvey, client services director, Russell Gibson had a novel means of winning her role at interview, particularly as it didn’t exist at the time, she tells Rob Kingsbury

  Locked down

  Dan Atkinson shares his thoughts on the unusual situation of starting a new job when the office is in lockdown.

  Tackling R06

  The 2019 pass rate for RO6 dropped by 10%. Catriona Standingford, MD of Brand Financial Training, looks at the October 2019 exam, what may have affected the pass rate and what future candidates need to consider

  The Power of Process

  Paraplanners are perfectly positioned to see where firms’ processes are working or not, which is why they should get involved in business improvement, says Michelle Hoskin, MD of Standards International

  The Scheme Pension trap

  Can scheme pension continue to have a place in financial planning? Stephen McPhillips, Technical Sales Director, Dentons Pension Management Limited, considers its use in financial planning

  IHT planning

  Exemption for BPR investments doesn’t apply until two years after the initial investment. What happens if the client is elderly or unwell?

  THE INVESTMENT COMMITTEE

  Dividends done?

  Aberdeen Standard Investments’ Will James considers the impact of recent cancelled and delayed dividends and what this means for equity income investing

  Under the microscope

  Darius McDermott, managing director, FundCalibre looks at the Healthcare sector, which has a number of positive factors in its favour including a potential uplift in demand post the current crisis

  Sustainable investing

  Mike Appleby, Investment Manager, Liontrust Sustainable Investment team considers potential economic changes post Covid-19 and how they may affect sustainable investing. Could we see an economy that is cleaner, healthier, safer and more equitable?

  Professional comment

  Tom O’Hara of the PFS Paraplanners Practitioners Panel reflects on what has been achieved in the five years since the panel was started

   

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• 

  MAY 2020

  THIS ISSUE

  CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE ISSUE ONLINE

  OR AS A PDF HERE: PP_May 2020

  Paraplanner profile

  Tony Slimmings, Managing Director, Paraplanning Hub talks to Rob Kingsbury about establishing his paraplanning businesses and why he thinks the days of the freelance outsourced paraplanner are numbered

  Viewpoint

  Rebecca Kowalski, paraplanner and compliance officer at Cornerstone Asset Management, explains how a new project for work has been key in fulfilling her personal aspirations too

  Suitability: Being human

  In the current climate, it is more important than ever that suitability reports are personal to the client and provide the reassurance they need, says PFS Paraplanner Panel member Rebecca Tuck

  Compliance: Agent as Client

  Many advice firms use discretionary investment managers to run client portfolios, often on an ‘Agent as Client’ basis. However, this can increase risks for advice firms, as explained by Steve Bailey, director ATEB Consulting

  TDQ: Investing for Children

  It’s important to be prepared for a question on the subject of investing for children, says Catriona Standingford, MD of Brand Financial Training, as questions can arise in R02, R03 and R04 and could also be included in case studies in R06.

  Remote working

  Enforced remote working could be the chance to prove how awesome you are, says Michelle Hoskin, managing director, Standards International

  Financial tidy‐up

  There are things to think about today to pre-empt the things we may have to deal with in the future. John Humphreys, inheritance tax specialist at WAY Investment Services, offers up some items for the checklist

  THE INVESTMENT COMMITTEE

  ESG catalyst?

  The current pandemic is seeing greater focus on ESG issues across the globe. The investment industry may not be the same from now on, says David Smith, head of Corporate Governance, Asia Pacific, Aberdeen Standard Investments

  Asia ahead

  Darius McDermott, managing director, FundCalibre, considers whether the

  Covid-19 pandemic will result in an acceleration of the rise of the east, providing greater investment opportunities

  Sector analysis

  The return of negative correlation. FundCalibre analysts reveal the effect of the Coronavirus crisis on correlation between sectors and what that means for portfolios.

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• 

  APRIL 2020

  THIS ISSUE

  CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE ISSUE ONLINE

  OR AS A PDF HERE: Professional Paraplanner April 2020

  Paraplanner profile

  Rob Kingsbury spoke to Kimberley Tyson senior paraplanner at Telford Mann in Kettering, who recently received an award for her exam achievements, reflecting a career progression that started when she joined the firm five years ago

  Advice during a pandemic

  Dan Atkinson considers the effects of situations like the Corona virus pandemic and what can be learned from it in terms of relationship with clients.

  Career progression

  When you’ve reached the top of your game what do you do next? A look at the options and the challenges many people face and key questions to be asking others and yourself in this situation

  Viewpoint

  A recruiter’s experience on why paraplanners leave their jobs. It’s an important point and firms need to take action on it

  TECHNICAL & PRACTICAL

  This issue’s TDQ feature looks at pension input periods, including a useful example calculation

  Access to insurance

  Signposting for vulnerable customers means going beyond TEXAS, says Johnny Timpson, Technical and Industry Affairs manager, Scottish Widows

  PROFESSIONAL COMMENT

  Life expectancy is not the same as the likely age at death. Jackie Lockie, head of Financial Planning, CISI, looks at why and what impact it has on financial plans

  Exam study tips

  PFS Paraplanner Practitioner Panel member Alan Gow, provides some tips and useful practices that have worked for him in his recent studies

  THE INVESTMENT COMMITTEE

  Pitfalls of fund picking

  Asked to pick funds for a client, Rebecca Kowalski, paraplanner and compliance officer at Cornerstone Asset Management, came to realise that outsourcing has distinct advantages for her firm.

  Passive vs active

  David Coombs, multi-asset manager at Rathbones, considers the downward pressure on portfolio cost and whether, when it comes to passives, the ultimate price we pay could be far higher than first anticipated

  VCT clients

  There are three client types that could benefit from a VCT, suggest Octopus Investments’ Paul Latham

  Tech apples and pears

  You can’t compare today’s technology sector growth to the ‘90s bubble, says Darius McDermott, managing director, FundCalibre

  Impact leaders

  European companies feature high in the ranks of sustainability listings. Sarah Norris, European Investment director at Aberdeen Standard Investments, looks at companies with business strategies that take them beyond economic profit

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