Financial Planning & Goals
Whatever your ambitions, a clear financial plan can help turn your goals into reality. The earlier you start, the more time you have to prepare.
Key Stages of Your Financial Journey
Early Life
- Setting lifestyle priorities
- Saving for and buying your first home
- Relationships and starting a family
Mid-Life
- Career progression and increased earnings
- Moving to a larger property
- Supporting your children, including school fees
Later Life
- Managing an inheritance
- Preparing for retirement, phased or full
- Downsizing, planning for long-term care and leaving a legacy
How We Can Help
- Build wealth through tax-efficient savings and investments.*
- Protect what matters by safeguarding your income and your dependants.
- Plan your legacy to maximise what you leave to your beneficiaries after tax.
National Employment Savings Trust (NEST)
NEST (the National Employment Savings Trust) is a defined contribution workplace pension scheme set up by the UK government to support automatic enrolment. It is a qualifying scheme that any UK employer can use to meet its auto enrolment duties, so you can enrol your staff in NEST instead of setting up your own scheme.
Members can transfer other defined contribution pensions into NEST, and can also transfer out to another scheme. NEST is deliberately simple, with few extras. Employers with more complex needs are free to consider other workplace or occupational schemes. Employers must auto enrol eligible staff into a qualifying scheme, but they don’t have to choose NEST.
Four things to consider as an employer
1. Which scheme suits your business?
Compare the advantages and disadvantages of other employer pension schemes with NEST. Some employers use a combination, for example an occupational scheme for permanent staff and NEST for other groups. If you take this route, get advice first to make sure you stay within the rules.
2. Budget for the cost
Employers must contribute at least 3% of each eligible employee’s qualifying earnings, which can have a significant effect on your costs. If you offer a higher rate, plan for the long-term cost. Check whether contributions are calculated on full salary or on qualifying earnings only. Budgeting early avoids sudden cost increases, and some employers review their overall pay and benefits package to absorb the cost.
3. Check your systems
Make sure your payroll and HR systems can handle the extra administration. This matters most if you run an occupational scheme alongside NEST.
4. Communicate clearly with staff
Help employees understand and value their pension. Many see it as an essential part of their benefits. Offering more than the statutory minimum can make you a more attractive employer and shows commitment to your workforce. If you do, you may want to look into a pension quality mark to help your scheme stand out.
EQUTIES
Investing in equities means buying shares in companies listed on a stock exchange. Historically, shares have tended to deliver higher returns than cash or bonds, though this is not guaranteed.
How you can gain
- Dividends: a share of the company’s after-tax profits, paid to shareholders. These are not guaranteed.
- Capital growth: if the share price rises after you buy, you have made a gain on paper. It becomes a real gain only when you sell.
The risks
Higher potential returns come with higher risk. Share prices can fall as well as rise, and you could lose some or all of your investment.
The value of investments can fall as well as rise, and you may get back less than you invest. Past performance is not a guide to future returns.
*The value of investments can fall as well as rise, and you may get back less than you invest. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may change.
