I initially approached Gemma as I was looking for help with cashflow planning, along with advice and guidance as to when I could hope to retire. I was immediately put at ease, as she explored what it was I wanted to achieve, explaining what she could, and couldn’t do.

Gemma approached my various pension providers to get current valuations and we met to review what she had prepared: the feedback was amazingly clear, illustrating various “what if” scenarios and – best of all – showed I could afford to retire much earlier than I’d anticipated.

As most generic employer-provided DC schemes assume you’ll buy an annuity, they progressively de-risk your investments as you approach retirement. This is not necessarily appropriate if you have a mix of pension pots or intend to use your investments on a draw-down basis.

For this reason, I decided to transfer most of my employer DC fund into an SJP managed fund, even though at no point did I feel any pressure whatsoever to move any of my investments; I left the existing DC account open so I can continue to take advantage of employer contributions.

The entire process managed by Gemma went extremely smoothly and I’m very happy with the outcome. I’ve now decided I probably won’t fully retire as early as I could, but instead ultimately look to reduce my hours and work more flexibly.

I would have no hesitation whatsoever in recommending Gemma’s services. As a busy professional, I value the fact Gemma works her hours around her clients, tailors her communication specifically to the individual, and manages the entire process on their behalf. I’m also able to recognise the value a fellow professional brings to the relationship. I’ve only been a client of Gemma’s for a few months, but already feel confident our financial planning relationship will last for a long time.