Linda and Martin

My parents owned their own business and CBW were their accountants. As a child, I remember visiting the CBW offices – I believe it was their first office – in Islington, close to where we lived. CBW has, therefore, always been a part of my family’s life. When the family business hit highs and lows, they were always there for us and it’s no different now.

My husband worked for a roadside recovery company. Over the years, they were bought out several times, and each time they were bought out, there would be a new pension scheme. A couple of years back, we discovered that my husband had nine different pension schemes. It was all a bit of a mess. My father advised my husband to get some advice from CBW Financial Planning.

They were great; Jason sorted everything out for us. I’m 61 now. My husband and I have both been able to secure early retirement, all because we took good financial advice from CBW.

Sadly, I lost my father two years ago. I used to be a teaching assistant, but I was also involved in the family business. I’m reasonably financially savvy but when my father passed away it was a minefield. I didn’t even know what questions to ask but they were so patient and guided me through it all. It can get complicated with a family business, but Lesley Pointer, who has now retired, but who was one of the original accountants in the beginning, and David Kramer, have been there, without fail, giving my sister and I the sound financial advice we needed. They helped us set up trust funds which is something I’ve never done before and wouldn’t have thought about on my own.

We know we can phone and talk to the team at CBW at any time and, when they answer, it’s as if we’re part of their family. When we go up and see them, they’re always very hospitable. They put on catering for us. It sounds like a little thing but it’s the little things like that help you relax when you walk into a large boardroom.

Of course, there’s a cost. But the benefits have more than outweighed the costs for us. During the pandemic, my husband was still working. I was so worried about him. He was driving customers in his cab, and even though he took all the precautions he could to stop himself from being exposed to coronavirus, he was still placing himself in danger. I wanted him to retire as soon as possible. With CBW’s help, looking through what was financially possible and making a plan, he was able to do that.

The conversations we have take in everything that’s important in my life, not just our money. They ask us if there’s anything we’d like to do in the future. They help us work out whether we can do those things we want; they make our wish list into a plan. I’d recommend them 100%.

I don’t know where I’d be without CBW, I really don’t. I get emotional thinking about it!