5 comforting ways financial planning can help turn your worries into confidence and control

14 January 2026

Financial planning is complicated, and with so many firms offering support and advice, it can be hard to know which way to turn.

At Depledge, we’re committed to delivering exceptional service at every stage of your financial planning journey. With an experienced specialist by your side, you can be confident that your finances are in safe hands, allowing you and your family to relax and enjoy life.

Don’t take our word for it – Steve Richardson has been a client of Depledge since September 2022, and he kindly took the time to share how working with us has turned his financial worries into confidence and control.

Watch: Steve Richardson shares his experience of working with Depledge

Here are five ways financial planning has helped Steve, and how we could give you and your family similar peace of mind.

1. Form a lasting relationship, built on trust

Steve was looking for experts he could rely on. “I wanted to know that I wasn’t just going to be a statistic and a number in an organisation […] I wanted consistency.”

Committed to delivering exceptional service at every stage of your journey, your Depledge financial planner will get to know you and remain by your side for all of life’s ups and downs.

They will get to know what matters most to you and your family and, over time, you may find that your close relationship develops into a lasting friendship.

It’s good to learn that Steve “feels reassured to be working with Daniel and the team at Depledge”, and that he’s built a trusting relationship.

As Steve has discovered, every member of the Depledge team truly cares for our clients. And the results of our recent client survey bear this out:

• 100% said they were satisfied that we understood their needs, goals, aspirations, and objectives.
• 99.15% believe that working with us has helped or will help them achieve their financial goals.
• 99.05% would recommend us to their friends, family, or colleagues.

From personal testimonials (like Steve’s) to glowing reviews on VouchedFor and Google, we’re delighted by the consistently strong feedback we receive.

2. Visualise your financial future through cashflow modelling

Whether you’re planning for retirement, building wealth, or navigating complex financial decisions, cashflow modelling is one of the key tools we use to help you reach your goals.

Cashflow modelling provides a clear picture of your current finances and future goals, helping you to visualise where you stand now and how your finances may look in years to come.

The ability to gain more clarity over your financial future can empower you to make wise decisions and take control.

Wherever you are on your financial planning journey, cashflow modelling can help you understand if your aspirations are within reach. If they’re not, your planner can advise on how you could adjust your plan, showing you when and how you might achieve your goals.

Steve notes the benefits of the clever technology, saying he feels “a lot more confident” about his financial future due to the way we use cashflow modelling to adapt the strategy and keep his financial plan on track.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) does not regulate cashflow planning.

3. Benefit from an investment portfolio tailored to your needs

When it comes to investing, while factors such as market returns are out of our control, there are many other ways working with an expert can help influence your portfolio’s growth.

We’re proud to be an independent advice firm, and when we make our recommendations, you can rest assured that we’ll select the right option from across the whole market.

Along with being independent, there are five key points that underpin our approach to investing:

• Diversification comes first – in short, don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Ideally, investors should hold a fully diversified portfolio to avoid concentrated risk.
• Costs really do matter – we aim to select companies with sufficient financial strength and adequate service levels, while also keeping fees and charges in mind.
• Strategic asset allocation – by combining different types of assets, collective investments typically have a lower level of risk than if the money were held in a single investment.
• Tactical asset allocation – sometimes, an active portfolio management strategy may be appropriate – we rebalance assets held in various classes in response to changing market conditions.
• An approach tailored to you – with access to more than 200,000 daily feeds providing us with market information, you can rest assured that your investments are in safe hands.

Speaking about his own investments, Steve says, “I feel the advice in relation to my portfolio and the balance of it is really well thought through”.

The value of your investments (and any income from them) can go down as well as up and you may not get back the full amount you invested. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.

Investments should be considered over the longer term and should fit in with your overall attitude to risk and financial circumstances.

4. Keep your plans on track with regular reviews

Your financial plan and investment portfolio will be tailored to your specific goals and needs, and reviewed regularly.

If you can benefit from changes in legislation or new financial products, your close and ongoing relationship means you and your planner will be ready to take advantage of any opportunities without delay.

Sometimes, your planner may need to take action after a meeting – to make fund changes, rebalance your portfolio, or adjust income payments or contributions, for example. At other times, your financial planner will simply leave you with peace of mind that your financial plan is performing in line with your goals.

“In the time that I’ve worked with Daniel, some of the best advice he’s given me is, I think, around timelines and my strategic plans in relation to the types of assets that I’ve got in my portfolio,” says Steve.

5. Enjoy peace of mind knowing your finances and family are in safe hands

Having confidence in your own financial future is one thing, yet providing confidence for your family’s future may be even more important.

When you’ve spent a lifetime building wealth, the last thing you want is for a large chunk to disappear in Inheritance Tax. From utilising gift allowances to setting up trusts and more, we’ll help ensure more of your hard-earned wealth passes to the people you care about.

The FCA does not regulate estate planning, or trusts.

As with many of our clients, family is top priority for Steve, and he’s been vocal about his satisfaction with us.

“I’ve already recommended Daniel and Depledge because they’ve not put a foot wrong. And coming up to a relationship that’s been formed over nearly the last three years, that’s quite something with a really important part of my life. You know, finances go to the heart of family life. I’m a family man. I want to secure my future, and so you would not give that recommendation to some of your peers without feeling really confident and trusting in Daniel and Depledge. And I do wholeheartedly.”

Get in touch

To find out more about how we could help you and your family take control of your financial future, please get in touch.

Email [email protected] or call 0161 8080200.

Please note

This article is for general information only and does not constitute advice. The information is aimed at retail clients only.

All information is correct at the time of writing and is subject to change in the future.