The quarter life, mid life and later life crisis, and why we will be there for you throughout.

Age 25 - “I’ve got ages”

Your world feels immediate. Rent, bills, holidays, building a career and trying to get some stability. Retirement feels decades away.

Official reporting from the UK Parliament highlights how rising living costs are hitting younger adults particularly hard. When everyday life is expensive, long term saving can feel unrealistic.

But your twenties are financially powerful because of time. Money invested early has decades to grow. Compounding and reinvesting quietly build momentum while you get on with life.

Advice here is about foundations rather than complexity.

An adviser helps you understand what your workplace pension actually is, where it is invested, whether it is set up for long term growth and how small increases now can make a big difference later.

It is less about retirement planning and more about setting things on a path so future you is looked after.

Age 45 - “The sandwich generation”

This is often the busiest decade of life.

Mortgage still there. Children more expensive every year. Parents needing more help. Career pressure at its peak. Less time and less headspace.

You may be earning more than ever, yet somehow there is less spare cash.

This group is often called the sandwich generation. Coverage from MoneyWeek highlights how many people supporting both children and older parents lose income or working hours at exactly the time pension saving should be strongest.

So pensions become something to sort out later.

Later often turns into years.

We typically see several old workplace pensions. Different providers. Different charges. Old investments. Contributions that never increased. No joined up view.

Nothing disastrous, just messy. And messy quietly costs money through higher fees and missed growth.

Advice matters here. This is the decade that usually decides retirement outcomes because income is higher and there is still time for growth.

An adviser helps you bring everything together, reduce unnecessary charges, aligns investments with your time horizon, increase contributions tax efficiently and model what your retirement income could realistically look like.

The changes are often small but powerful. Slightly higher contributions or slightly lower fees compounded over years can mean tens of thousands of pounds difference.

Most of all it removes uncertainty and gives you a clear plan.

Age 65 - “Please let this be enough”

Retirement should feel lighter. More time and more freedom.

But for many people it feels uncertain because the pension is no longer savings. It is income. It is your pay cheque.

Research from Crisis highlights how housing and financial insecurity still affect many older people, and analysis from the Institute for Fiscal Studies shows that people are living longer than ever. That means retirement income may need to last 25 to 30 years or more.

Investments are no longer just about growth. They are about balance. Generating reliable income while still protecting against inflation and market shocks.

Advice becomes about confidence. Structuring sustainable withdrawals. Managing tax. Keeping enough growth while reducing unnecessary risk. Stress testing plans so you know you will not run out of money.

Retirement should feel calm, not like constant budgeting.