The Society of Financial Advisers (Sofa) is working to develop a 'holistic' qualification in planning for long term care costs.
Sofa is to go ahead with a first stage of accreditation set at the level of the FPC. The idea is to provide an interim qualification on LTC before it is decided how the subject will be incorporated into the FPC on a full-time basis. Sofa said that given the complexities of LTC provision, any qualification would more than likely be set at the level of the CII's Advanced FPC.
Margaret Borwick, chairman
of the long term care working party, said developments anticipated during the next five years would be embraced in the new qualification, which is hoped will be ready in two years. During this period IFAs and the financial services arms of solicitors are likely to be regulated by the same body, and rehabilitation therapies, as advocated by the Royal Commission, would be more widely employed.
She said: "The training proposals need to be put in the context of the new Financial Services and Markets Bill. The objectives of that bill is to introduce more consumerism into the whole financial services market. The working party will aim to meet these objectives."
The working party has recruited Margaret Richards, a former training director at law firm Eversheds, and author of a number of legal works on elderly care matters, to help with legal matters.
