Financial Wellbeing Workshop

09 Oct Financial Wellbeing Workshop

With the current Cost of Living Crisis and one of the main reasons for absences from work being due to stress from finances, Terry Ratcliffe from Wren Sterling has created a financial wellbeing workshop to support staff and employers alike.

Being stressed about money can have a huge impact on both your mental and physical health, relationships and job performance. With the added impact of the Cost of Living Crisis, it’s even more important for people to understand their finances and what they can do within their control to relieve financial stress and insecurity.

“Do the right things today, to live for tomorrow, to plan for a successful future”

During his time as a Financial Advisor, Terry has found most people think financial planning is for the wealthy or people planning for the future. But everyone can benefit from looking into their finances – it doesn’t matter how much money you have. Some people also fall foul of saving for tomorrow to the detriment of today, when better planning can strike the balance for both.

With a focus on education Terry’s workshop provides everyone, regardless of circumstances or income, with the knowledge to make better informed decisions around their finances. Better decisions means less strain around money and greater security in personal and professional life.

The workshop covers

• Banks: bank accounts, overdrafts and different types of bank accounts like Current Accounts and Packaged Accounts.
• Credit cards: how they work, what APR is and what the ‘bare minimum’ payment on a credit card means.
• Loans: understand what a payday loan is and how these loans work for you or – more importantly – how they work against you.
• Financial budgeting: how to budget using an Excel spreadsheet template, track what you’re spending money on and what your finances look like in real time. (People don’t think they have disposable income but once they complete the template they realise they do, but it’s easy to fritter away.)
• Mortgages and rent: what a mortgage is, the different types of mortgage there are and the pros and cons of renting.
• Utilities: gas, water and electricity, what’s being paid and what your consumption rates are. How to get better deals on your phone and broadband.
• Apps and websites: which organisations are giving things away for free, you can get food for free or cheap through using apps like Too Good To Go and OLIO.
• Pensions: understand the value, your pension has tax relief and employer contribution – you’re not going to get all the money in your back pocket if you stop paying into it.
• Support: what help is available if you’re in financial difficulty. Don’t suffer in silence, let’s talk, let’s do something about it.

Hearing Terry talk about the different elements showed he’s not only passionate about helping people, but extremely knowledgeable across all areas of financial management.

Some Financial Advisors specialise in one area, but Terry qualified in all areas because ‘everything is intrinsically linked’. It’s also a huge benefit to speak to one person who can look at your whole financial picture and explain everything in a way that makes sense, rather than having many conversations with different Advisors in different areas.

“ You can take control and it’s not as difficult as you think it is”

If you’re currently worried about your finances – you are not alone in what you’re feeling. Finances can be overwhelming, all consuming and can get out of control quickly. It’s understandable that people bury their heads in the sand, but Terry shows you can take control. It’s within your grasp and ability and it’ll make you feel a hundred times better. Also, the sooner you talk about it and do something about it, the easier it’ll be to put right.

Who is the workshop for?

The workshop actually sits outside of his usual role as a Financial Advisor, but Terry created it to specifically help employers seeking to improve their wellbeing offer. Because of how linked financial wellbeing is to our health, it makes sense for employers to provide education related to finances, but not many employers do this as part of their employee remuneration package.  So if you want to make a meaningful impact on your employees’ wellbeing, this workshop will fill an important gap.

You can also contact Terry directly on a one to one basis, where you can talk about the areas of your finances that need attention or learn about all the topics included in the workshop. Again, financial planning is accessible – the initial consultation is free and if any further action is recommended, any costs will be explained to you before you agree to proceed with the advice. So if your finances are negatively impacting your wellbeing, please do get in touch. Once you start talking about it you can do something about it.

Get in touch

Whether you’re an employer wanting to holistically support your staff’s wellbeing or an individual wanting to take control of your finances, please email [email protected]