Financial Planning
Retirement is the perfect time to add some little indulgences into your life, your reward for navigating the challenges of a lifelong career. They don’t need to be particularly expensive or over the top. But things that will enhance your life, boost your wellbeing, and add a sense of fulfilment to your retirement can all […]
After a year filled with uncertainty and rising trade tensions, markets were calmer in December 2025. Find out what may have affected the performance of your portfolio at the end of the year. Market volatility eased in December 2025 Markets were downbeat at the start of the month. Most European markets were in the red […]
When you’re building a business, you might have little time to think about other aspects of your long-term finances. However, overlooking your pension in favour of your business could leave you in a difficult situation when you want to retire. According to a survey carried out by think tank the Social Market Foundation (12 August […]
You might already know that salary sacrifice can be a practical way for your employees to bolster their retirement funds, while reducing their tax liability. However, in the 2025 Autumn Budget, the government announced changes to how salary sacrifice is treated for National Insurance (NI) purposes. From April 2029, a new cap will be introduced, […]
In the Autumn Budget 2025, the chancellor announced that Inheritance Tax (IHT) thresholds would remain frozen for a further year, until 2031. Upcoming changes will also see unused pensions included in an estate for IHT purposes for the first time from April 2027. These measures could see estates facing a larger IHT liability, or coming […]
Language is powerful. The words you use to describe different scenarios can change how you perceive events, and the language used for retirement could lead to a pessimistic outlook. Writing in an article for Saga (21 October 2025), lexicographer Susie Dent explains that in English, “retire” has its roots in a Latin word meaning “to […]