Hayley Rabbets, head of the Verve Foundation, tells Fiona Bond about her mission to change the face of financial advice and engage younger generations in the profession.
In April, the Verve Group announced the appointment of Hayley Rabbets as Head of the Verve Foundation. As a long time advocate for greater financial education for the masses, it is a role she relishes.
“I’m thrilled to be head of the Verve Foundation, helping to make a difference. My passion has always been about financial education and helping younger generations to take an interest in their financial wellbeing.
“It’s also really important to encourage a more diverse group of people into the financial advice sector and champion the different careers available so I’m excited to carry this work on,” says Hayley.
We Are Change
The Verve Foundation, a not-for-profit arm of the Verve Group, was established in 2020 to help people who had lost their jobs as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic retrain within the financial advice sector.
The Foundation’s ‘We Are Change’ initiative is a two-year part-time funded training programme, which sees students supported through their Level 4 Diploma in Regulated Financial Planning with the CII. The programme is delivered by The Art of Finance, an established training company within the Verve Group. As part of the training, The Art of Finance delivers educational workshops and practical skills e-learning to students, helping them to understand the different career paths and roles available to them within financial services.
It is part of the Verve Group’s drive to break down the perception of the finance sector as ‘stuffy’ and ‘dull’.
Sponsors are required to sponsor a student at a cost of £85 per month for 24 months, which covers the cost of the CII membership, study materials and exam entry. To date, sponsors have included Seccl, Adviser Cloud, Fintel, The Lang Cat and Buckingham Gate, among many others.
For Hayley, the ‘We Are Change’ initiative provides the perfect platform to share her knowledge and passion for all things finance.
“My route into financial services was a classic tale of falling into it,” says Hayley. “I was working in a carpet shop and pub when I saw an advert for a job as a receptionist at an IFA firm. My knowledge of the financial services sector was pretty much non-existent but I found myself really curious and asking lots of questions from day one.
“I think the fact I didn’t grow up with any financial knowledge or guidance has motivated me to help as many others as I can who have had a similar start in life. For years, talking about finance was a taboo but financial education and an understanding of your own financial health is so important,” she adds.
During her time at the IFA firm, Hayley took on lots of different roles, including office manager as well as paraplanning tasks. From there, Hayley moved into a paraplanning role, before working across operations and team management. But Hayley, who achieved her Level 6 Advanced Diploma from the London Institute of Banking and Finance, says she had no desire to become an adviser.
“I think, for me, when I entered the industry, it was all older men which if I’m honest put me off. That’s why what we’re trying to do at the Foundation is so important; we are trying to break down those barriers and make it a much more accessible, inclusive industry.
“I’ve always enjoyed paraplanning, but education and working with younger people is what truly excites me and I’m thrilled that I get to do this for a job.”
In October 2021, Hayley took on the role of Head of Services at the Verve Group. It was during this time that founder Cathi Harrison approached Hayley and asked if she wanted to become an ambassador for education for the group. She held this role alongside her day job before joining the Foundation full time at the start of this year.
“Our aim is to attract people from outside of the industry, both those who may have had an interest in financial services but were unsure how to pursue it as well as those who have never ever considered it. We’ve had students who were working in a job unrelated to financial services while studying, students who are on a career break and even maternity leave. It’s a real mixed bag and that’s why it’s so great.
“There’s been a great deal of talk around the advice gap and people leaving the industry so it’s our job to make sure that we continue to attract more people into the sector and from a wider talent pool.”
So far, the initiative has welcomed 5 cohorts through its doors, with each cohort consisting of around 10 people on average. Looking ahead, the Foundation is keen to run a women-only cohort, which it hopes will encourage more women into what has traditionally been a male-dominated space.
“For a long time, you were the only woman in a room full of men but that’s changing now and we need to keep that momentum going. Even if women are still a minority in the room, we want them to have the knowledge and support to be there,” explains Hayley.
Helping vulnerable communities
Hayley is also keen to encourage greater financial education among more financially vulnerable individuals. Last year, Hayley held a money workshop at a YMCA hostel to help residents learn more about budgeting and saving. For Hayley, many of these people form what she describes as the “lost generation”.
“There is a whole generation of people who didn’t have access to parents who were able to provide financial guidance or support, often they come from impoverished backgrounds. However, they’re not quite young enough to get involved with the whole TikTok generation and craze of online money tips and financial coaching.
“I want to help these people understand more about money and break down misconceptions around what financial advice is. I think the fact I don’t look anything like what they would expect someone within financial advice to look like really helps.”
The Verve Foundation is also planning to run a summer school to help more young people learn about financial health, with a pilot session expected later this year.
A new generation of advisers
The Verve Foundation recently launched the Adviser Incubator, a 12-week programme aimed at supporting financial advice firms through the early, often challenging, stages. Hayley describes it as a springboard for those who have always wanted to set up their own firm or seeking to scale their business but who require help and direction.
“With the Adviser Incubator, we’re looking to help younger people in need of support and offer a different way of doing things. We appreciate how difficult it is to start any business, let alone a financial advice business where there are lots of regulatory hoops to jump through.
“The more young advisers we encourage and support to enter the industry and grow their business, the more chance we have of bridging the advice gap and appealing to a younger demographic,” explains Hayley.
“We are at a point in time where technology will play an increasingly important role and going forward, advisers will need to strike the right balance between using digital capabilities and human interaction. We want to support firms in getting that right and continuing to offer appealing propositions for young people who may have a different view of what financial advice is.”
Going forward, Hayley would like to see the advice industry supporting each other’s initiatives and championing efforts to encourage fresh blood into the sector.
“We’re not the only ones seeking to help people into a career in financial advice, and it’s important as an industry that we spread the word about what help and support is available. By doing so, we will slowly but surely help to improve the industry for everyone,” she adds.
