Barratt Health & Wellbeing Month: Week 4 Financial health and wellbeing is something that impacts us all. We know how much of an impact personal finances can have on our wellbeing and we know many are concerned about the rising cost of living. This week we look at some resources and tips for staying on top of your money, taking action to cope with these rising costs and supporting you in achieving and maintaining a positive financial wellbeing. In recognition of the unprecedented increase in the cost of living, colleagues are receiving a salary supplement paid between July and December 2022.
Salary Finance Our financial wellbeing provider, Salary Finance, aims to support colleagues with their money by providing access to savings accounts and money insights, to help you take control of your money. They also provide information on the government-backed Help to Save scheme, where anyone receiving Working Tax Credit, Universal Credit or Child Tax Credit could earn bonus payments on their savings. To find out more visit: https://barrattdevelopments.salaryfinance.com/savings/home. You can also access lots more on cost of living, planning, budgeting and more on financial wellbeing via Salary Finance ‘LEARN’, where you will find newsletters, blogs, videos, guides and calculators to help support you.
Employee loans We also have an employee loans policy, which includes a welfare loan for anyone who is experiencing financial difficulty as a result of unexpected expenditure, details of which can be found on Docushare.
Money Talks Hub from Close Brothers Our partner Close Brothers, provide financial education and can help you get a better grasp of your finances by providing information, tips and calculators as well as live webinars around many parts of financial health such as debt management, mortgages, tax and much more. For more on the Close Brothers ‘Money Talks Hub’ visit https://www.moneytalksatclose.com/barratt/hub. We know that the cost of living in the UK is increasing, with more and more people are feeling the pinch. This is a challenging time, but there are things that can be done which could help you, your family and friends, to better manage your finances during this time. For more information and tips on budgeting, reviewing costs and outgoings, managing debt, state entitlements e.g. council tax rebates and cost of living support packages then join the Close Brothers ‘Managing the cost of living rises’ webinar on Friday 18 November at 12:30pm-1:15pm. Click here to register. For information, tools and links on many areas of health and wellbeing please click here to visit our My Barratt Benefits website. For any queries or suggestions, please contact handw@barrattplc.co.uk.
Barratt Health & Wellbeing Month: Week 4 If you are concerned about your financial situation it is important that you get help. There’s more support and free, confidential advice through the UK’s leading independent debt charity, StepChange. Use their 60-second debt test, debt consolidation calculator and ‘7 days, 7 ways’ email programme to help you take back control of your finances. Call StepChange on 0800 138 1111 or visit https://www.stepchange.org/ for more information. Please check out some of the below links for more advice around financial wellbeing, money, debt and mental health: Money Health Check: Free online financial health checker tool Money Advice Service: Free debt advice services available across the UK Money Saving Expert: Free advice on a variety of financial topics StepChange debt charity: Find help by answering a few simple questions Money Health & Money Advice: Practical advice and resources Mind: Manage your money and mental health Citizens Advice: With lots of advice on many of life’s challenges, from cost of living to paying energy bills
Our Employee Assistance Programme, Unum Lifeworks offers support and articles on financial planning, retirement planning, income changes, budgeting, debt & saving. You can call them confidentially 24/7/365 on 0800 048 2702 or visit https://unumuk.lifeworks.com/ (user id: unum password: lifeworks).
Manage your finances in the run up to Christmas Happiful magazine have 25 tips worth considering to help manage your finances in the run-up to the festive period. Check them out online by clicking here to subscribe to the free monthly e-magazine. https://subscribe.happiful.com/.
My Barratt Benefits and every day employee discounts In addition to our excellent contractual benefits and discounts, we also offer a range of voluntary and flexible benefits. These are benefits which you can opt to receive which are funded by you, normally as a deduction through payroll. Some voluntary benefits are available through salary sacrifice. Visit My Barratt Benefits for further information. You can also click here to watch this short video to find out more about the range of benefits available to employees, or you can look at the My Barratt Benefits summary which includes further information as well as details of our enhanced policies. Through BenefitHub, our retail discounts provider, you can also make savings on everyday purchases, including on your weekly shop at major supermarkets, plus more than 400 other retailers. Find out more on your My Barratt Benefits platform. For information, tools and links on many areas of health and wellbeing please click here to visit our My Barratt Benefits website. For any queries or suggestions, please contact handw@barrattplc.co.uk.
Barratt Health & Wellbeing Month: Week 4 Pensions Retirement, for some, may seem like a long way off, but everyone needs money for when they stop working, so saving for retirement is important. Whilst we’re all navigating the rising cost of living it may not be the right time to increase how much you pay into your pension, but it makes sense to understand where you currently stand and plan for any changes you want to make – now or in future.
Did you know? All Barratt employees are eligible to join the Scottish Widows Master Trust pension scheme. This offers 10% employer contributions (compared with 3% employer contributions with The People's Pension (TPP) auto enrolment scheme). Plus the Scottish Widows scheme includes a 5x salary death in service provision, compared with 1x salary provision for those in the TPP.
So why not make the move to Scottish Widows today if you haven’t already? You can find out more about your Scottish Widows pension by downloading the Scottish Widows app (available via the App Store & Google Play).
Be Money Well Our pension partner Scottish Widows has a financial platform called Be Money Well which brings together relevant information, tools and guides from across Lloyds Bank, Halifax and independent experts to help you be more in control of your finances and to Be Money Well. You can find out more here: https://www.scottishwidowsbemoneywell.co.uk/
MoneyHelper MoneyHelper is here to make your money and pension choices clearer and to make it quicker and easier to find the right help. Here to cut through the complexity, explain what you need to do and how you can do it. They also include information on managing your money in uncertain times. Click here to access: https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en.
Nudge Nudge, a financial education platform, demystifies money management and helps you to understand your finances better and take action to manage your money and plan for your future. With timely prompts (nudges) to take action, nudge can boost your financial wellbeing.
Did you know? All Barratt employees have FREE access to the Nudge app via The Lighthouse Club. All you need to do is download the Construction Industry Helpline app (via the AppStore or Google Play) and access their financial wellbeing tab and you can access Nudge under the more info section. Find out more on Nudge in this video. For information, tools and links on many areas of health and wellbeing please click here to visit our My Barratt Benefits website. For any queries or suggestions, please contact handw@barrattplc.co.uk.