We were the proud sponsors of Halifax Rugby League Football Club’s 1987’s team Reunion Dinner, which took place at the Shay Stadium on Saturday 1st July.

We held a competition in partnership with Halifax RLFC, giving away two VIP tickets to two lucky fans. We’d like to say congratulations to Sharon Oliver who won the VIP Gold Seats, for the sold out 87 Reunion Dinner plus a VIP dining package for the Bradford Bulls match the following day. Sharon and her partner were given the opportunity to join the former players at an evening event which included a three-course meal and a meet and greet afterwards.

VIP ticket holder and contest winner Sharon Oliver commented:

‘I’m incredibly pleased to have been given this amazing opportunity. My husband has been a fan of Halifax RLFC since he was 10 years old; he went to all the games with his father. It was a struggle to be able to listen to the challenge cup final all those years ago, being in America, so I feel like this is a chance to relive the excitement from 1987! I was nervous but very excited to meet all the players!”

As the competition sponsor, Investing For Tomorrow selected the lucky winner; have a read of Sharon’s inspiring entry:

“Imagine a time before the Internet, Whatsapp, Twitter or Facebook. There were almost no Personal computers, no IPads, mobile phones were the size of bricks and email was for the few in the know. Imagine being a lifelong Fax Fan and working in North Carolina USA (Brit newspapers taking a week to arrive) and what happens?

“Your team makes it to the Challenge Cup Final for the first time in living memory. You can’t afford to fly back to London, what on earth are you going to do?

“That’s exactly what happened to my husband – then a twenty-something fan of 15+ years and marooned for two years thousands of miles away in the land of gridiron.

“By chance, I was in the dentist who happened to be British and was telling her this story and amazingly she said she had a long range radio we could borrow. So that’s how we listened to the match (no TV), in our condo with a very crackly signal. It was so exciting and I was so glad we’d managed to experience it albeit all those miles away. The next year we were back in the UK, excitedly followed the ’88 Fax to Wembley and … lost, gutted!”

Investing For Tomorrow is a growing practice, extraordinarily engaged in the Halifax and Huddersfield community serving a very wide range of clients. The practice thrives on living its brand, ensuring clients make the most of their assets to enjoy today, and prepare for their future.

The practice is growing and therefore we need to grow the team, the next addition is an experienced para planner who wants to be in at the early stages of something great. Rewards will be good and will grow as the practice does.

Right now the practice is after experience before qualification, help will be very forthcoming for those who want to reach their potential in terms of qualified status, someone who has ‘been there and done it’ will be a best fit for this vacancy.

Attitude needed:

Committed

Hard working

Detail obsessed and determined to be excellent

Experience needed:

A wide range of financial systems including;

O&M Profiler, Selectapension, Adviser Asset, FE Analytics and the Synaptic Research tool.

Overall:

Put simply the successful candidate will need to write exceptionally competent reports analysing the finances of our clients and making the best recommendations to our advisor team.

Apply to: Investing for Tomorrow recruitment@iftwm.com

Our founder and managing partner, Laurence Turner has volunteered to assist the Whiteknights Yorkshire Blood Bikes ahead of National Blood Bike Day on 12th August 2017.

The Whiteknights Yorkshire Blood Bikes is a local charity providing free ‘out of hours’ transportation of blood and other vital supplies to the NHS and hospices throughout the region.

Laurence joined the Whiteknights Yorkshire Blood Bikes on the 19th June, after undertaking his advanced motorists qualification. He recently embarked on his first overnight shift for the charity, carrying critical blood supplies from Bradford’s Marie Curie Cancer Care Hospice to Calderdale Royal Hospital in Halifax and will now assume the volunteering role several times each month.

Laurence commented:

“Riding for the Whiteknights helps patients all over West Yorkshire get blood results and test results far quicker than they would any other way. If we weren’t doing this, the NHS would have no option but to pay for taxis.

“I’m sure if more of the public knew about the Whiteknights and that we were purely volunteers, more people would be keen to help the cause with admin support, paying for the fuel and help to keep us going.

“Having ridden a motorcycle for the last thirty years and having a real understanding of the cost constraints that have now been placed on the NHS, I was keen to use my skills to give something back to the community and support a local charity doing fantastic things for those in need.

“I am thoroughly enjoying my volunteering with the Whiteknights and I’m looking forward to many more shifts to come. Juggling work with volunteering hasn’t been easy and in the heat it can be tricky to ride but it’s something I’m very committed to. Helping the charity is extremely important to me; It’s a very rewarding way to give back.”

Whiteknights Yorkshire Blood Bikes West Yorkshire Regional Manager, Andy Dickens said:

“Since joining the Whiteknights in June of this year, Laurence has integrated into our team of volunteer riders well. To date, he has successfully completed 26 over-night shifts of being on-call for the urgent transportation of Pathology samples between The Calderdale Royal Hospital and Huddersfield Royal Infirmary.

“He has been a friendly and valued member of the team and I hope his enthusiasm for the importance of the voluntary work we do to save the NHS money, will continue as we reach the more challenging riding conditions of winter.”

Find out more about the Whiteknights by visiting their website https://whiteknights.org.uk

Getting ready to jet off for that long-awaited summer holiday? The warmer months are usually the only time we tend to think about the globe’s different currencies and their values. Before packing your bags you’ve probably already considered the following:

• Where is the best place to get our currency?
• How much money will we need?
• Should we get travellers cheques, cash, a pre-paid card or perhaps a combination of all?

But is a holiday the only time we need to think about foreign exchange markets?

Absolutely not. Did you know that currency fluctuations can have a significant impact on the performance of your own individual personal investments?

For example, when the UK voted to leave the EU this had an overall influence on our investment returns.

Sterling has been particularly unstable in 2017, falling sharply amidst fears of a ‘hard Brexit’ from the EU. Prior to the referendum, the exchange rate stood at 1.4947, in other words £1 bought you $1.50. The day we voted to leave the EU, the unexpected result negatively affected the pound, as the UK economy became less attractive to overseas investors.

UK dividends have also been affected.  Many UK companies receive a significant amount of revenue from abroad, and these dividends will have increased in value once converted back into sterling.

Sterling looks set to remain under severe pressure, while Britain’s departure from the EU is negotiated. Another major factor affecting currencies is the interest rate expectations. The prospect of higher interest rates in an economy tends to boost its currency: higher profits on assets in a particular currency make it more attractive, whereas very low rates have the opposite effect.

Many investment funds available through Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) and pensions have overseas currency exposure. In some cases, a lot of gain or loss can be due to the currency exchange rate rather than the return of the underlying shares or other assets. Whenever there is a large change in any currency, whether it’s rising or falling, there are always winners and losers.

Some businesses will inevitably benefit, others will not. Some households will find their food costs go up, while others will see their money going further by staying home rather than holidaying overseas.

With mixed views on the outlook for sterling, it’s more important than ever to remember that investing is for the long term, and no single asset class will provide strong returns or benefit from currency movements in all economic conditions.

That’s why it’s always a good idea to invest in a well-diversified portfolio that spreads your money across a variety of investments and geographies to achieve the best balance between risk and return, and to review this regularly.

At Investing For Tomorrow we pride ourselves on helping our customers achieve their life goals, from saving for your dream holiday to investing in starting your own business. It’s important to understand how currency fluctuations might affect life choices. If you would like to book a free discovery meeting to learn more, get in touch.

We’re delighted to announce that Investing For Tomorrow’s managing partner, Laurence Turner, has been shortlisted in the Volunteer of the Year award at Calderdale’s Community Spirit Awards.

The 2017 Calderdale Community Spirit Awards seeks to recognise the efforts of the most dedicated charities, community groups and volunteers in the area.

The Volunteer of the Year award will celebrate the volunteer who has displayed the greatest commitment to a charity in the last year.

Laurence was nominated in this category due to his dedication to a number of charitable causes including the Whiteknights Yorkshire Blood Bikes, an initiative he recently joined, which relies on volunteers to transport blood and other vital supplies between hospitals, hospices and supply centres all over West Yorkshire.

The awards ceremony which will take place on the 28th September 2017 at the venue, Bowers Mill Barkisland, Halifax, will feature touching stories of bravery, determination and success from the men & women in the community who do so much to keep their causes alive.

Sponsored by BCA Leisure, Riley & Co and Covea Insurance, the event, which will be hosted by Anna Foster from BBC 5 Live, will begin with a drinks reception 7:00pm – 7:30pm, followed by a 3-course meal.

Commenting on the award shortlisting, Laurence Turner said:

“I am delighted and honoured to have been recognised for my volunteering work in the last year. Helping the community in which I live and work is something that is incredibly important to me and my business. I am very much looking forward to meeting with all the other nominees on the evening

To find out more about the awards or to book tickets, visit: http://halifaxcommunityspiritawards.co.uk/buy-tickets/

It is Pension Awareness Day on 15th September 2017. It might not sound like the most exciting day of the year, but it does help to raise awareness about the importance of putting provisions in place to protect your finances.

Thinking about pensions sooner rather than later is the real difference between a comfortable retirement and just making ends meet.

One of the most critical aspects of retirement planning is how you structure your financial affairs to make sure you have sufficient money, if and when, you stop working.

Pension Awareness Day is a day designed to encourage people to plan for their future and secure the future of their families. The earlier you start thinking about this the sooner you can relax and the bigger the pension pot you have to enjoy.

Under the Government’s auto-enrolment scheme, employees over 22 years old, earning more than £10,000, will be automatically opted into a company pension scheme. Both you and your employer must contribute to your pension, and while there is a minimum amount you must pay in, it is a good idea to try to pay in as much as you can afford.

The good news is that under current rules, one of the big advantages of making pension contributions is that they will benefit from tax relief.

Surprisingly, many people spend more time planning their annual summer holiday than their own retirement. Not knowing where to start could be a contributing factor – but planning for the future, does not need to be complicated. In fact, it can be broken down into three simple steps:

Step one:

Know what you need and set yourself a target.

The closer you are to retirement, the more likely you are to know how much income you will need to cover your outgoings. If you have longer to go until retirement, it is still good to have an idea of what you are aiming for – and you can review this each year as you get closer.

Step two:

Have an understanding of what you already have.

The second step is simple – understanding what you have already saved. Knowing what you already have will help you to understand how far you are towards your retirement target. If you have a lot of different pensions, it may be worth considering bringing those all together into one account if appropriate.

Step three:

Take action.

• Are you paying in the right amount?
• Are you invested in the right kind of fund?
• When can you realistically retire?

Don’t put off planning for retirement. By following these simple steps and reviewing your retirement plan at least once a year you are planning for a better future.

If confusion and a lack of understanding around your retirement needs, has led you to put off planning and saving anything, you’re not alone. In fact, over half of people in the UK are in the same position.

If you would like to take your future into your own hands and plan for a happy retirement, book a free discovery meeting with the Investing For Tomorrow team today.

We’ve teamed up with See It Now Sports to deliver an exciting event for business professionals this autumn.

Our VIP Race Day will take place at the home of the Grand National, Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool on Saturday 11th November 2017.

We’re inviting fellow professionals and business owners to enjoy a day of national hunt racing action with a three-course buffet lunch, executive travel, waitress service, a racecard, private tables and informal networking.

The Investing For Tomorrow team will be in attendance on the day and look forward to welcoming some friendly and new faces to a fun-filled day of horse racing action.

Demand for places is expected to be high and guests are invited to book tickets for the exciting event on the See It Now Sports website. Tickets are just £99 per person plus VAT.