• Initiative will help specialist advisers develop their skills in response to growing demand for equity release within a fundamentally changed retirement landscape
• The partnership will allow The Council to continue its work instilling rigorous Standards to ensure a safe market and protection for consumers, and encouraging market growth
• Later Life Academy was launched to raise education and standards among financial advisers
• Together, these two key principles will join to provide access to an accredited scheme that will benefit many  new and developing advisers in the sector

The Equity Release Council (The Council) has today announced a joint skills initiative with the Later Life Academy (LLA) under the banner ‘Raising Standards, delivering excellence’, launching in April 2016.

Building on the already comprehensive LLA educational offering, the partnership will offer an enhanced programme of accredited training for Equity Release Council adviser members. This will support advisers’ and provide a low cost option to continuing professional development needs, promote best practice and strengthen ties with related areas of retirement planning.

Since pension freedoms were introduced and the continued growth of equity release as a key mainstream option within the retirement planning landscape the need for advisers to have a solid understanding of a range of influencing factors in the financial services arena has grown. The initiative will therefore help specialist advisers to broaden their knowledge and service offering in directly related areas, ensuring good customer outcomes by offering a range of solutions or signposting to other experts where necessary.

Advisers will have access to a number of complementary training modules on subjects including pension freedoms, estate planning and benefits and taxation. Should members choose to work through the development programme to become a fully graduated member of the LLA, there will be compulsory modules that need completing: Pensions & Guidance and Long Term Care. These modules are compulsory in forming the bedrock of knowledge and understanding of consumer needs in retirement.

A dedicated module on equity release and housing wealth is designed to support the best practice advice standards set out in The Council’s Rules and Guidance. These ensure advisers discuss a range of related issues with consumers before making any recommendation including benefits, tax, estate planning and alternatives to equity release. 

Initially a series of three events will be run to offer a day’s training on best practice, consumer outcomes and how to develop a more robust client proposition. These will be launched in April/May and be followed by an ongoing series of modules focusing on care funding, benefits and taxation, estate planning and funeral plans, and marketing and business development.

The LLA training programme is accredited by the National Skills Academy for Financial Services and is open to all Level 3 equity release-qualified advisers and above. 

The initiative will support adviser firms of all sizes, and will be of particular benefit to SMEs who may have limited access to training in-house. The Council and LLA will host a series of events in Spring 2016 to promote the partnership.

Donna Bathgate, Chief Operating Officer at the Equity Release Council, commented:

“Partnering with the Later Life Academy will strengthen the support for existing and new advisers in a rapidly growing market. High standards of advice have been fundamental to giving consumers confidence to use equity release as a source of retirement income. This new initiative offers a clear channel to support best practice and increase the scope of advice to help meet extra demand.

“Planning effectively for later life means weighing up a host of issues, and our response to the FCA and Treasury’s Financial Advice Market Review suggested it would be difficult for any single adviser to become a specialist across every area. However, it is important to have a firm foundation of current knowledge to give or signpost clients to the most suitable advice for their circumstances.

“Combining The Council’s Standards and LLA’s accredited training will help businesses to adapt to changing consumer needs and the increasingly complex retirement landscape. It also reinforces the fact that, by choosing a Council member, consumers will receive the best quality of advice.”

Stuart Wilson, Managing Partner, Later Life Academy added:

“There are a great many advisers authorised in this sector who want to see an established support programme to enable them to deliver more solutions to more consumers. It is clear the later life market is not only growing but evolving, and this strategic initiative will assist advisers in developing and moving their business forwards, enabling them to deliver a stronger consumer proposition. Our shared vision with the Equity Release Council is to empower those advisers wishing to improve their market knowledge and standards.”

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For further information, please contact:

• Andy Lane, Jordan Campbell, Victoria Heslop or Sam Fisk at Instinctif Partners, on 020 7427 1400 or email [email protected]

About the Equity Release Council – www.equityreleasecouncil.com

The Equity Release Council is the industry body for the equity release sector, which represents over 400 members including providers, qualified financial advisers, solicitors, surveyors and other industry professionals.

It works to ensure a safe equity release market for consumers, by operating rigorous Standards for the provision of advice and products which guarantee security of tenure and financial protections. 2016 marks the 25th anniversary since the first industry Standards were created for equity release in 1991. Since then, over 350,000 consumers have taken out an equity release plan from Council members, drawing on almost £17bn of housing wealth.

The Council also works with consumers, industry and policy makers to improve awareness and understanding of equity release and the potential for housing wealth to help solve many of the financial challenges facing people over the age of 55 across the UK.