Blog
Picture this: you get a WhatsApp from your son. Or a call from your “bank”. Or a voice note from your partner. It sounds right. It uses the right words. And it’s urgent. That’s the big change in 2026. AI hasn’t made scams “genius”, it’s just made them more believable and more frequent. This isn’t
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Most people don’t actually want to “retire” in one dramatic moment. They want to step down: fewer days, less pressure, more life… while still keeping the future safe. The problem is that a phased retirement can go one of two ways: Designed (calm, controlled, tax-efficient, flexible), or Drifted into (random withdrawals, surprise tax bills, and
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If you remember the Health and Social Care Levy being announced with a lot of fanfare in 2021… you’re not imagining it. However, the key update is simple: there is no Health and Social Care Levy in place today. It was introduced briefly via higher National Insurance in 2022/23 and then cancelled and repealed before it ever
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The tax year ends on 5 April 2026. That deadline matters, but it does not mean you should use every allowance just because it exists. Good tax planning is about making sensible moves that improve your long-term plan, cut unnecessary taxes, and keep your money in the right place. For 2025/26, the key figures are:
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When people think about retirement, they usually ask: “Do I have enough money?” That matters. But there is another important question: “Which pot should I take money from first?” If you get that wrong, you may pay more tax than necessary and make your later retirement more difficult. If you get it right, your money
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Many business owners think that once they sell the business, the hard part is done. It often is not. Selling a business can turn something hard to access into cash. But it does not automatically sort out tax, retirement income, investing, passing money on, or what happens next. This matters even more now because the
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For years, retirement drawdown advice was often boiled down to one simple rule: spend your cash and ISAs first, and leave your pension until last. In many cases, that was sensible. But from April 2027, it may no longer be the default answer. That does not mean everyone should suddenly start spending their pension first.
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We all want to help the people we care about. For many grandparents, one of the most meaningful ways to do that is to help with education costs. That might mean helping with private school fees, university costs, music lessons, tutoring, school trips, or simply reducing the pressure on parents at a very expensive stage
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From 6 April 2027, most unused pension funds and pension death benefits are expected to be included in a person’s estate for inheritance tax. This changes a long-standing planning assumption. For years, many people have been told to spend cash, ISAs and other investments first, and leave pensions until last. That may still be right
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Many people spend years saving and investing. But when it comes time to spend the money, it can feel difficult. This is normal. You have worked hard and saved carefully. You have seen markets go up and down. Tax rules change. The news can be worrying. You might worry about care costs, helping your children,
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