Congratulations to our new Pension Transfer Specialists

Two more members of the Investing For Tomorrow Team are now qualified Pension Transfer Specialists

We’d like to congratulate Toby Turner and Gary Hanley who have recently passed their AF7 exams to become qualified Pension Transfer specialists. This is part of Investing For Tomorrow’s ongoing commitment to our clients, to stay as up to date as possible in a constantly changing financial landscape.

Completion of these exams requires extensive study and practical application which alongside their day-to-day duties at Investing for Tomorrow proves Toby and Gary’s dedication and commitment to giving the best possible service to all of our clients. Old and new will benefit from the up to date knowledge being gained on an ongoing basis. It doesn’t stop here.

As of May 2016, there were over 36,000 members of the Personal Finance Society (the principal professional body for financial advisers in the UK), of which only 5,000 held Chartered Financial Planner status. There will soon be two more.

Toby says ‘It is another exam achieved in my push for Chartered Status.  After starting my Diploma in May last year, and completing it in October last year, these Advanced Diploma AF exams count towards being Chartered.  I did the AF7 exam first because, along with my other exams completed last year, it allows me to provide advice on Occupational Pension Transfers, which is a very hot topic at the minute.

I am currently doing the AF8 which is a coursework based exam to do in your own time over a 12 month period.  I have also booked the compulsory unit AF5 to be taken in October 2018.

There will be other exams that I need to do, of my choice, to ensure I get enough points to get to Chartered.  I want to get to Chartered because, not only is it the highest standard an adviser can achieve, as a ‘relatively’ young adviser, it stands me in good stead to sit in front of potential clients and to be able to say that yes, I am relatively young as an adviser in this profession, but I have achieved Chartered Financial Planner Status.’

And Gary adds ‘After achieving my Diploma in 2010 I took a break from studying to concentrate on spending time with my family whilst my daughters were young.  They are both now teenagers and are therefore doing their own things.

I decided at the start of the year to dedicate my time to studying again with a view of achieving Chartered status within the next 18 months to 2 years.  Working for an IFA practice that has achieved Chartered status is very important for me as it shows their commitment to reaching and maintaining the highest level of professional achievement.  This is something that I am keen to achieve personally.

I decided to start with the AF7 exam as this is the most modern exam and reflects what I am seeing on a day to day basis in the current financial climate.  Informing clients or prospective clients that I have completed such a relevant exam when talking to them about their Final Salary Pensions puts their mind at ease that we fully understand the complexities of such an important area of their Financial Planning.

I am now in the process of studying towards AF8 and have also booked in for the compulsory AF5 exam in October.

I am now well and truly back into study mode and I look forward to be able to report back when I have achieved my Chartered Status’

More information about the qualifications and the path to becoming chartered can be found on the Personal Finance Society website.