The government has launched a consultation on a new way of drawing pension benefits.* Unless you work for Royal Mail, you probably have not heard of Collective Defined Contribution (CDC) pension schemes. The scheme is most easily understood as a halfway-house between: Defined benefit (DB) schemes: which offer guaranteed benefits (usually related to final or averaged salary) funded by variable contributions. Defined contribution (DC) schemes: which offer variable benefits, fun

Landlords need to prepare for the changes coming next year from the Renters Rights Act, which recently received Royal Assent. While detailed guidance is yet to be published, the first phase of reforms will be introduced from 1 May 2026.(1) There are several provisions which those engaged in property letting will need to take into account in their dealings with tenants. Tenancies All existing assured shorthold tenancies will automatically convert to the new tenancy system. All

A government announcement has set tuition fees in England on a rising path once more.*/** In October, the UK Government announced a range of changes for post-16 education. What grabbed headlines were details of the proposed new ‘V Levels’, which will be “new vocational qualifications tied to rigorous and real-world job standard”.1 V Levels will form part of a new educational goal for two-thirds of young people to participate in higher-level learning – academic, technical, or

That time of year has arrived again. How will you balance your finances in 2026? With New Year’s Day falling on a Thursday in 2026, many people will not resume work until Monday 5 January. In theory, that leaves you plenty of time to recover from New Year’s Eve indulgences, if necessary, and contemplate New Year’s resolutions. To help you with the latter, here are half a dozen financial resolutions to ponder: Get a will or, if you have one, make sure it is up to date: If yo

This year’s Budget risked becoming the winter budget, arriving as late as possible on 26 November after a long, rumour-filled run in.* The Chancellor’s first Budget last autumn, on 30 October 2024, came following the early announcements of a raft of revenue-saving measures to fill her infamous “£22 billion blackhole”. Rachel Reeves’s second Budget moved four weeks nearer to Christmas and was preceded by two significant summer U-turns – on the winter fuel payment and disabilit

HMRC is sending out letters asking taxpayers to check their dividend totals.* You may have received something that starts like this: “Dear XX Please make sure your tax return included all your dividend income. We’re writing to ask you to check your self assessment tax return for the year ended 5 April 2024. This needs to include all your dividend income from shares in UK companies. We’ve seen quite a few mistakes in this area on tax returns, and we want to help you get this r