Fernleigh Wearden & Company Ltd
Independent Financial Advisers
Four fields. That’s it.
One of our advisers will ring you back by the end of the next working day, at the time you asked for.
In a hurry? Call us on 01772 864314, 9am–5pm Monday to Friday.
For individuals
Whole-of-market advice on where your money sits, what it costs you to hold it and how much of the return you actually get to keep.
Overview
We are tied to nobody. Every provider and every product is on the table, which means we can be led by what suits you rather than by a shortlist somebody else drew up.
The starting point is always risk — not the risk you think you ought to take, but the risk you are genuinely willing and able to take. Those are different things and getting them confused is how people end up selling at the bottom of a market fall.
Then it is about structure and tax. The same investment held in the wrong wrapper can cost you a great deal over twenty years and most people have never used their allowances properly simply because nobody sat down and explained them.
Reckless caution is a real risk. Leaving everything in cash feels like the safe decision. Over a long enough period, inflation makes it one of the most reliable ways to lose purchasing power.
Our aim is to beat industry standard benchmarks, matched against your level of risk and the relevant Investment Association (IA) sector.
We will show you performance against those benchmarks at our initial meetings, in our December report to you and it will also be discussed in your annual reviews should you take up our ongoing service.
An aim is not a guarantee. The value of investments can fall as well as rise and past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.
A typical client portfolio holds fifteen or more funds, each of which may itself hold a hundred or more companies. That can mean over five hundred underlying holdings at any one time. It is a very different proposition from owning shares in a handful of individual companies, where one failure can do real damage.
We also build our investment strategies in house rather than paying an external discretionary manager to do it. That keeps the cost down and it means the person explaining the strategy to you is the person who built it.
Access. Our investments are generally accessible within ten working days — unlike a fixed-rate ISA or bond that ties your money up for a year or two. We do recommend a minimum five-year view, though.
Advice areas
Depending on the level of risk you are willing and able to take, this is the range we work across.
Stocks and shares, cash and Lifetime ISAs. The simplest tax wrapper there is and the one most people underuse.
Collective funds giving you a spread of holdings without needing to pick individual shares yourself.
Onshore and offshore. Useful in particular tax situations and for estate planning, unhelpful in others.
Government-backed and entirely secure. Sometimes exactly right, sometimes not competitive. We will say which.
Allowances, dividend and capital gains thresholds and how spouses can use both sets between them.
Gifting, trusts and the nil-rate bands. One of the few taxes that genuinely rewards acting early.
Quick calculator
A rough illustration of how a lump sum plus regular contributions might grow. Move the sliders to fit your own situation.
Your figures
Illustration only, using a 5% middle growth assumption with 2% and 8% as lower and higher scenarios, less 1.2% a year in charges, in line with the approach used for regulatory projections. These are assumptions chosen for illustration, not a forecast and not based on the past performance of any fund we recommend. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results. The value of investments can fall as well as rise and you may get back less than you put in. Tax treatment depends on your individual circumstances and may change.
Working with us
Nothing is committed until step five and the first two cost you nothing but time.
A chat, at our office, your home or over video. We listen, you ask questions. There is no charge and no obligation and if we can't help we'll say so.
What you have, what you owe, what you want and how you feel about risk. This is the part most people find surprisingly useful in itself.
We review your existing plans, charges and funds against the whole of the market. Being independent means nothing is off the table.
A written report in plain English setting out what we suggest, what it costs and why. You take it away and think about it.
Only once you're happy. We handle the paperwork, the providers and the chasing, which is usually the tedious bit.
If you'd like us to, we'll review everything at least once a year and tell you honestly if nothing needs changing.
Who you’d be dealing with
Any of the three can advise on investments and tax planning. Where a situation is more complex it will usually be Mark, our Chartered Financial Planner. Whoever you meet, we will always endeavour to keep you with them.
In their words
Fernleigh Wearden & Company have been my financial advisors for over 20 years. Paul Wearden has always offered sound financial advice based upon my individual needs and objectives. Paul delivers advice in a straightforward and honest manner. I feel as though he really cares about my finances and future.
I wouldn’t hesitate in recommending Paul & Mark to my friends and relatives. Not only do they provide a consistent return on my investments through good times as well as bad, but they are also always extremely approachable, providing a reliable response to any questions.
Fernleigh Wearden & Company Ltd have been our financial advisers for over 30 years. They are easy to contact and sort out our requests promptly. I would have no hesitation in recommending them to friends and family.
Often relevant alongside this
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Read more Try itSee what your money might look like over the next thirty years, charges included.
Read moreCommon questions
There is no formal minimum, but our charges carry a minimum advice fee of £795, so for very small sums advice may not represent fair value. We will tell you at the first meeting if we think that is the case. You can see the full picture on our costs page.
That we can recommend from every provider rather than a panel. Restricted advisers — including several very large national firms — are limited to a defined range. Both are regulated and legitimate, but the difference usually shows up in what you pay. There is more on this in our guide to adviser titles.
No and be extremely wary of anyone who does. The value of investments can fall as well as rise and you may get back less than you put in. What we can do is make sure the risk you take is deliberate and that you are not paying more than you need to.
We do not have any. We are not owned by a product company and have nothing of our own to place, which is precisely why we are able to say no to things.
At least annually if you take our ongoing service and we will tell you honestly when nothing needs changing. Reviewing is not the same as tinkering.
Yes and it is worth starting earlier than most people do. Some of the most effective planning depends on surviving seven years from a gift, so the calendar does a lot of the work. Complex trust and estate work may be charged above our standard rates — we will always tell you before we start.
Our services
Advice areas overlap. Part of our job is spotting which ones actually apply to you.
The first conversation is free and there is no obligation. Tell us when suits and an adviser will ring you back.
