Following on from the union’s successful Financial Wellbeing Week in 2020 in relation to the financial burdens placed upon members during the height of the coronavirus pandemic and national lockdown, UNISON has decided to run another financial wellbeing event.
With sessions on understanding your pay and planning your finances through to navigating pre-retirement and making your groceries go further and cost less, we hope there is something for everyone. Further details of all training sessions and webinars and how to register can be found below.
The programme
There’s a wide range of sessions running over the two weeks of this event. All these workshops are free to members and are delivered online, using either MS Teams or Zoom.
Monday 17 October, 10am-11am
Budgeting in 2022: Check in on your finances – delivered by FLIC
Take the time to check in on your finances this autumn. This session will build up your financial preparedness with a dive into basic budgeting. We will talk about budgeting during a cost of living crisis, automating your finances and which debts to prioritise. Whatever your money situation, you will understand what money support is available and which money risks can be avoided with a little forward planning.
Tuesday 18 October, 12pm-1pm
Earning in 2022: Getting paid – delivered by FLIC
Your bills are coming out monthly, your pay is less regular and it can be tricky to budget when costs are rising and you are struggling to cover your expenses. This session will not guarantee you a pay rise, but we can make sure you get paid correctly, helping you with everything from tax codes to tips on checking your entitlements. We will cover what a timesheet, payslip and invoice look like so you can learn to spot common mistakes — and get the full pay you signed up for.
Wednesday 19 October, 10am-11am
Financial Planning – delivered by Lighthouse
Lighthouse are delivering this webinar to help you make the most of your money and secure your financial future. At the webinar, one of their expert financial advisers will be explaining how you can:
- Build up a nest-egg tax-efficiently, for yourself or for your children or grandchildren.
- Boost your pension provision, so you will be able to enjoy a comfortable retirement.
- Protect your family’s income, so they have enough money if the worst happens.
- Take your pension, including both public and private sector pensions, and get the best possible income.
Thursday 20 October, 4pm-5pm
Surviving the Financial Squeeze – delivered by Lighthouse
(also delivered on 26 October)
Lighthouse are delivering this webinar to help you make the most of your money and secure your financial future. At the webinar, one of their expert financial advisers will be explaining how you can
- Manage the impact of financial worries on your wellbeing
- Create a plan and take control
- Know your budget
- Identify where to cut back
- Knowing what the future has to offer you today
- Understand your rules and allowances
- Create your tomorrow
- Take action
Friday 21 October, 1pm-2pm
Managing your debt – delivered by PayPlan (UNISON Debtline)
This webinar offers advice on how to keep your finances under control and how to use practical steps to make things more manageable. As well as this we will show you how to seek confidential guidance and support to resolve problem debt if needed. So, whether you have serious money worries or not, everyone can benefit from the information being shared.
Friday 21 October, 2pm-3pm
Managing your debt – delivered by UNISON Debtline
As above.
Friday 21 October, 2pm-4pm
Credit Crunch Cookery – delivered by UNISON
This workshop, created and delivered by UNISON, is designed to provide ways in which you can make your groceries go further. How to avoid waste, save money and provide for your family in a more cost effective way. As well as providing tips and tricks to enable you to do this we will also be providing you with a selection of family friendly recipes to take away with you.
Monday 24 October, 10am-12pm
Credit Crunch Cookery – delivered by UNISON
As above.
Monday 24 October, 2pm-3pm
Pre-Retirement – delivered by Lighthouse
In this webinar, presented by one of Lighthouse’s expert financial advisers, you will be able to learn about:
- How your pensions work
- When you can take your pensions and how much you can expect to receive
- Your options for accessing any additional pension savings, including from previous employers
- Ways you may be able to increase your income
- Tax considerations, including your tax-free lump sum
- Countering inflation: will your income keep its value in real terms?
Tuesday 25 October, 6.30pm-7.30pm
The McCloud Ruling – delivered by Lighthouse
This webinar is for those whose pensions have been affected by the McCloud ruling or for reps who may have members in their work place whose pensions are affected by the McCloud Ruling. The areas covered in this session will be:
- Background to McCloud
- Members in scope
- McCloud Remedy Choice
- McCloud timeline
- Retrospective Annual Allowance
- What support you will get from pension scheme administrator
- Next steps
- Q and A
Wednesday 26 October, 10am-11am
Surviving the Financial Squeeze – delivered by Lighthouse
(also delivered on 20 October)
Lighthouse are delivering this webinar to help you make the most of your money and secure your financial future. At the webinar, one of their expert financial advisers will be explaining how you can
- Manage the impact of financial worries on your wellbeing
- Create a plan and take control
- Know your budget
- Identify where to cut back
- Knowing what the future has to offer you today
- Understand your rules and allowances
- Create your tomorrow
- Take action
Thursday 28 October, 2pm-3pm
Borrowing in 2022: What can I do to borrow cash this year? Stopping your debt getting dangerous – delivered by FLIC
You might be worried about spiralling bills, paying off old debts or borrowing for the future. It is sometimes necessary to borrow money, but not all debt is the same: when we are desperate to borrow we can sometimes make decisions we regret. Whatever you do for a living, this session is aimed at those with questions about borrowing money — past, present and future.
Our partners
This Financial Wellbeing Fortnight, UNISON College are working with Lighthouse Financial Advice (part of the Quilter group), Flic, UNISON’s own Welfare department and charity There for You, and UNISON Debtline (provided by PayPlan) to deliver excellent training, information and guidance in the hope of relieving some of the worry you may be experiencing.
Lighthouse Financial Advice is the trusted financial advice partner of UNISON. They are a leading financial business, and their purpose is to help you achieve your aspirations through expert financial planning. Not only are Lighthouse delivering a range of webinars for us, but as a member of UNISON you are entitled to free one-to-one initial financial consultation with them around financial planning, mortgages or retirement. These flyers contain further information and contact details about their member benefits.
Flic (the Financial Literacy and Inclusion Campaign) is supported by the FT’ and aims to ‘democratise financial education’. Flic has partnered with UNISON to bring you three interactive workshops to help you take stock, plan ahead and understand what help is available.
UNISON Debtline service is available to help members manage money and stay in control of their debt. They can help members access a debt relief order, individual voluntary agreement or bankruptcy. The service is available free to all members, by simply calling on freephone 0800 389 3302. Members will have an initial chat with a trained advisor to get a true reflection of their circumstances.