School leavers needed to inject 'new blood' into paraplanning

More must be done to attract school leavers and inject some much-needed "new blood" into the paraplanning industry, an expert has appealed.

Liam Chapman-Lyes, a senior paraplanner at Succession Wealth, said although his firm does run a successful graduate recruitment programme for university leavers, it must widen the net to attract more school leavers.  

He said: “We really need to get new blood into the industry and raise the profile of paraplanning. There’s an opportunity there. We are not yet going into school and it is something we can look at in the future. 

“Paraplanning is an excellent career and we need to raise the profile with sixth form and school leavers because it is a great alternative to build a career without having to go to university.

“I didn’t go to university and I was able to build a career for myself quickly by studying for my Level 4 Diploma. What that has meant is that I don’t have any university debts, I don’t have any student loans and my employer funded my exam. I was learning whilst earning and building a career.”

He said most school leavers enter the paraplanning professional through an administration role by joining as an entry level financial planning assistant.

They do this while they study for a Level 4 Diploma, which allows them to become an associate paraplanner. This process usually takes around 18 months to two years. 

Unknown career

He said part of the problem with attracting young people is that not enough of them know that the career exists. 

He said this is because paraplanning is a relatively new industry.

The advent of tighter regulation such as the Retail Distribution Review  in 2012 and other changes such as consumer duty has meant that financial planning has become more complex. This has given rise to a greater need for more supporting roles such as paraplanning. 

It would help if you had a degree in economics or mathematics, but it is not going to hinder you in the job if you don’t have one

He said: “Not many people know what paraplanning is like because not many people have heard of it. That is because 10 or 15 years ago it wasn’t really a profession. It has only evolved over the last 10 years or so.” 

Chapman-Lyes has a personal reason for his appeal because he also took an unconventional route into the industry.

He left school at 16 and worked at various places such as John Lewis, Metro Bank and The Open University, before he decided to shake up his career during his mid 20s and began studying for a Level 4 Diploma. He soon landed a job with Succession Wealth and is passionate about promoting the benefits of this career.

Degree not essential

This is why he believes that although having a degree is beneficial, it is not essential as he has still managed to obtain a Level 6 Diploma and has worked his way up to the role of a senior paraplanner.

Chapman-Lyes added: “There are lots of people who have done their degrees and have become paraplanners, but it hasn’t done me any harm. You don’t need a degree. It would help if you had a degree in economics or mathematics, but it is not going to hinder you in the job if you don’t have one.”

Chapman-Lyes said although paraplanning can be a great stepping stone to a career in financial advice, it is a standalone career in its own right. 

He said: “A lot of people think that you go into paraplanning and become a financial planner. For me, I like the technical side of paraplanning. I still have some involvement with clients but I like this role. I enjoy the type of work it involves, the research and the calculations.”

He added that one of the reasons why many people choose to stay in paraplanning is because of the flexible working arrangements, and greater ability to work from home. 

He said: “The paraplanning role caters for people that do want the flexibility to be home-based because you're not client facing.

“Post-Covid a lot of paraplanners do work from home, so for firms it is great for recruiting because you have the whole country to look for your talent rather than just local.”

Aamina Zafar is a freelance financial journalist