Richard & Sam Kennerley

"We needed someone who understood us. James gave us clarity and confidence."
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Transcript

Richard  
Hi, I’m Richard Kennerley, and this is my wife, Sam. We’ve been working with Ernest Grant for just over five years, and James Richards is our relationship manager.

 

Sam
We had been living in Australia for just over 10 years, and when the pandemic hit in 2020, we chose to come back to England to be nearer our ageing mothers. We then decided that we needed some strong financial advice on our situation back in England.

When we returned to England, it was quite different from when we’d left 10 years ago. So, we wanted to understand the financial regulatory and compliance background and how that would actually affect our financial affairs, particularly in relation to pensions. We had somewhat lost touch with what was happening and what we were able to do with our pensions.

 

Richard  
What we really liked about James was his personal approach. He wanted to understand our personal aspirations and goals, and financial objectives. So, we chose Ernest Grant because of the combination of the professional reputation of the firm, and also James’s personal approach to help us achieve our personal goals.

 

Sam
One of the things that James was really key for in regard to my situation was advising that my SIPP had some potential irregularities in it that he felt might lend themselves to a compensation claim. James wasn’t able to work with me on this. However, he was able to provide some behind-the-scenes advice, which enabled me to achieve the maximum amount of compensation. So, that really was a “Brucie Bonus”, and he was very helpful with that.

 

Richard  
We have greater clarity now around our financial future. We can now start to plan for the future, which is important at this stage in our lives, where we’re both coming towards the end of our careers, and we’ve had fairly long careers. I feel more confident now that working for many years is going to support our transition into retirement. I’m looking forward to retirement more than I was previously, because I feel confident that we’ve got our ducks in a row to support our needs as we head into retirement.

 

Sam
One of the best things about working with James and Ernest Grant is peace of mind – that security in knowing that someone is there for us, and also, if it had to be, for me, that’s certainly worth its weight in gold.

 

Richard  
I’d recommend James and Ernest Grant without any hesitation whatsoever. They’re highly professional. I’m very confident that they give us good advice, they’re very approachable and contactable – literally at the end of a phone. So, no hesitation here whatsoever, we have already recommended them to family and friends.

What our clients say

Our success is measured by the happiness of the individuals we support. Hear directly from the clients and families who have placed their trust in Ernest Grant.

"We needed someone who understood us. James gave us clarity and confidence."

Richard & Sam Kennerley

Their story
“Through every crisis, Paul kept us calm and on track for early retirement.”

Ian & Beverly Elliot

Their story
“It’s incredibly rare to find expert advice that’s honest and easy to understand.”

Simon Parker

Simon's story
“It’s important to me that my family is looked after, not just my finances.”

Guy Waterman

Guy's story
“Working with Richard and the team has taken a lot of worry off our shoulders.”

Simon & Rachel Healy

Their story
“Paul helped us focus on the long term, not just the here and now.”

Stuart & Gemma Thorp

Their story

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