Latest News

You may not have heard about the Retail Distribution Review but will hear more over the coming months. Broadly, the Financial Services Authority has decreed that commissions will be replaced by fees, to start in January 2013. Openwork, the network under which our other company, The Financial Adviser Company (FAC) operates, has launched a pilot scheme to help firms to make the transition.

As part of working towards the Retail Distribution Review and the further development of our company we have recruited two more university graduates, Alasdair Maspero and Mathew Bonney. Both have qualified in business studies and the plan is to fast track them through to Diploma level and beyond. To enable Mat and Ali to apply themselves more fully on client work, we have also recruited a general administrater, Hannah Turley.

We sent the news recently about the two young horses in which we have an interest through Highclere Thoroughbred Racing.  The good news is that they have both left Highclere Stud and have been sent to their trainers.

I would like to share the good news that I have appointed Sonia a director and she is now a shareholder of both companies.  Sonia has been a part of our companies for over four years from when she joined from being a building society manager locally.  Since then she has achieved The Certificate in Financial Planning and this year completed the daunting task of passing all the examinations for the Diploma in Financial Planning.  She now intends to continue to become Chartered.  Sonia

Last Autumn I attended the Personal Finance Society annual dinner and bought some charity tickets and was lucky enough to win the main prize - a day out with our two Olympic Gold Medallists, Iain Percy and Andrew Simpson.   

You may not all know the great affinity that we have at Essential Financial Management Ltd. with horses.

Sonia Wheeler owns a three year old Belgium Warmblood mare which she is bringing on to event and we all hold our breath on a Monday morning to see whether Sonia comes in limping or smiling. 

Our client, Alisa Connan, is holding an exhibition of her art during the evening of Wednesday 27th October 2010 at the crypt, Spitalfields Church in London. This will be a star-studded art and auction event and all the funds raised are going to Macmillan Cancer Support.

This year there were more visitors than ever. The Advanced Riders were so numerous that they were run in three sections, with many foreign riders. There was a battle between New Zealand riders Mark Todd and Andrew Nicholson to win the silver trophy for best foreign rider across all three sections. Andrew won two of the sections and beat Mark by being nearest the optimum time. At the same trials, Zara Phillips won the Stately Homes Challenge final. 

We are pleased to congratulate one of our clients from the North of England, David Lawton, on becoming the 2009 beef farmer of the year finalist. David was a referral from a long standing sheep farmer client, Ted Sclater, in the South of England.

This just shows what a diverse and dispersed crowd our clients are! Well done David. 

ZARA PHILLIPS ON TOYTOWN
OLYMPIC MEDALIST FOR UK