Andrew Day, director of financial planning at , based in Manchester and London, said he was supporting Financial Planning Week 2026, which runs from 26 January to 1 February, to help increase this percentage.

It is a nationwide public outreach campaign to spread awareness of the benefits of financial planning. It targets UK consumers to eneable them to experience the benefits of financial planning through free, introductory appointments and resources from UK financial planning professionals.

Day said Depledge is offering 15 free consultations throughout Financial Planning Week – a nationwide Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI) initiative – encouraging financial planners to give an hour of their time.

“Less than 9 per cent of the UK population get financial advice, but so many more people could benefit from it,” Day said. “While Financial Planning Week is just one week, financial planning is for every week. People go years and years saying I must get a financial plan together but don’t do it because life is busy.”

“When people eventually do get a financial plan in place they’re always glad because they then have a clear route for the future,” Day continued. “It’s like decluttering the back room. When you finally do it, you feel so much better. That’s the human psyche.”

Depledge said it encounters two main audiences: Those who have taken financial advice but don’t know what to do, and secondly, those who say financial planning is not for them because they haven’t yet accumulated much wealth.

Financial planning involves setting personal goals for your life and then working out a plan to achieve them, Depledge said, echoing the Financial Planning Week’s slogan “Live your today. Plan for tomorrow.”

“It doesn’t matter how young you are, or how little wealth you may have accumulated compared to someone else, financial planning is 100 per cent for you,” Day said. “Setting goals for your life then piecing together clear steps to achieve those goals – from pension contributions and paying down unsecured debts through to regular investing stocks and shares.”

“Despite the mystique around this topic, none of this is all that complicated when you get into it – and it could absolutely change your life for the better by giving you a practical plan to achieve financial security in future,” Day added.