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The future is electric
We look at how one local business is adapting to the changes in increased electric vehicle use in the Cotswolds
06 finance Which pension is best? 08 astronomy The pollution of space 08 education Children & Mental Health
12 Local business adapts for the future cotswold link 10 Advertising Details cotswold link 14 Index local news: Featured
Welcome to the March - April issue In this issue we look at how a local business is adapting to the increased use of electric vehicles across the Cotswolds (p12), as well as looking at the issue of pollution in space (p8) and the importance of discussing children’s mental health (p8). I hope you all enjoy this issue and I’ll see you again in May. Best wishes,
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Christine Campbell | Editor
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LPA Today
Many people are fearful that registering a Lasting Power of Attorney means losing control. This is not true, LPAs are purely a safety net, giving people you Trust the Legal right to make decisions on your behalf, should you lose mental capacity due to illness or accident. Few have any advanced notice of such a distressing scenario and unfortunately, many assume that their spouse, partner, or children will just be able to take care of things but, that simply isn’t the case. For someone to obtain legal authority over your affairs (without a registered LPA), that person would need to apply to the Court of Protection and the Court will decide who should be appointed to manage your affairs as your ‘Deputy’. This is a very different type of appointment, significantly more involved, time consuming and costly than being appointed attorney under a registered LPA. If you wish to have peace of mind that a particular person / or people will have the legal authority to look after you and your affairs making matters easier and
less expensive, then you should strongly consider putting the appropriate Lasting Power of Attorney in place by calling LPA-Today. So, when does a registered LPA take effect? A health and Welfare LPA can only take effect once you have lost mental capacity and are no longer able to make your own decisions. A financial decisions LPA can take effect before you lose the ability to make your own decisions, although you must give permission. If you don’t provide permission, your financial decisions LPA will simply take effect once you’ve lost mental capacity (just like a health and Welfare LPA). LPA’s Do Not relinquish control, they provide You with control and protection. Please call LPA-Today on 01608 644163 to discuss this further.
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WHICH PENSION IS BEST? THE PROS & CONS AND WHO THEY’RE MOST SUITED TO In previous articles, we’ve covered the various types of pensions and why it’s best to start investing early. Now it’s time to look at which pension might be best for you.
Workplace Pension Pros:
Workplace Pension: The Verdict
• It’s your employer’s responsibility to set it up. They choose the provider & set the scheme up on your behalf.
The best approach to a workplace pension is to be active in the process. Sure, one of the main benefits is that you don’t have to do a thing, but spending a little time investigating your preferred fund and maximising your personal contributions on top of your employer’s contributions will help to build a healthy looking pot for your retirement.
We believe any pension is better than no pension. But depending on your circumstances, one particular flavour of pension may benefit you more than others.
• Ongoing charges are capped at a maximum of 0.75% per year.
The Modest Start Pension: Stakeholder Pension
• Encourages younger people in employment to start saving for their retirement – as we know, the earlier the better!
Designed for those with modest earnings, the Stakeholder Pension facilitates lower minimum contributions while retaining certain features like capped maximum charges.
The pension schemes currently available to UK residents and citizens are: • Workplace Pension • Stakeholder Pension • Personal Pension • Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) • Small Self-Administered Scheme (SSAS).
The ‘Every Person’ Pension: Workplace Pension For the vast majority of the UK workforce, the Workplace Pension will naturally become your retirement pot. It’s simple, your employer sets it up on your behalf, and your contributions can be automatically taken from your salary. No thought required.
• By law, your employer must contribute a minimum of 3% of your salary (they can choose to pay more). • If you’re eligible for automatic enrolment, you don’t need to specifically ask to be included.
• It is truly the ‘set-and-forget’ pension scheme.
Stakeholder Pension Pros:
Workplace Pension Cons:
• Payments from as low as £20 per month.
• They do the minimum required to meet obligations set out by the government.
• Stop and start your payments as required (no admin charges).
• Changing employers could leave you with various pensions at retirement, making them harder to keep tabs on.
• Make one-off lump contributions when you’re in a position to do so.
• The scheme’s default fund choice is often ‘cheap and cheerful’ and might not be the best for you personally. • Selecting a different fund from your employer’s default fund removes the maximum charges cap (the ongoing fees will depend on the fund you choose).
• Breathe easy knowing the ongoing charges are capped at 1.5% per year for the first ten years and 1.0% per year after that. Stakeholder Pension Cons: • The onus is on you to pick the provider and set the pension up. • The fund selection can be rather limited (sometimes only 20-50 to choose from) • Limited fund choices make appropriate diversification tricky for the non-professional • You may be tempted to ‘pause’ your contributions and forget to restart them.
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Stakeholder Pensions: The Verdict Stakeholder Pensions can be a fantastic option for those who need a straightforward, streamlined solution. Giving you flexibility on how much you contribute and peace of mind with ongoing charges caps; you can’t fault the Stakeholder Pension as a starting point. Given the often limited fund choices, a Stakeholder may not be where you want to keep your retirement pot long-term.
The ‘In-Control Investor’: Personal Pension More hands-on than a Stakeholder, the Personal Pension works in a similar way but gives the investor more options. But as we all know, with great power comes great responsibility. Personal Pensions often require more consideration to set up and maintain, to ensure your money is working how you want it to. Personal Pension Pros: • Low minimum contributions, often from £50 per month • Flexibility to stop and re-start contributions as needed (often no admin charges). • Make lump-sum top up contributions when you’re in a position to do so • Often broader investment choices than offered by a Stakeholder, including higher-risk options that could improve returns over the long term. Personal Pension Cons: • The onus is on you to select the pension provider and set the scheme up. • No cap on ongoing charges. • Can be hard to calculate the total annual cost, and what impact costs are having on investment returns (known in the industry as ‘Reduction in Yield’). Personal Pension: The Verdict If you’re a reasonably savvy investor that wants to set up your own solution based on your needs and goals, the Personal Pension could be a great option. The only caveat is that this should not be treated like a ‘set-and-forget’ type pension. Leaving it without oversight isn’t advised. Make sure to check your annual plan statements and that you understand the content.
The Experienced Investor: Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) A SIPP is the most appropriate option for investors with existing wealth who are financially knowledgeable and want flexible ways to grow & protect their assets, including their pension. SIPP Pros: • Larger range of investment options, including: • the ability to invest in direct equities • the ability to invest in commercial property • the ability to invest in fixed-rate deposit accounts. • Options to link with third party platforms, increasing the fund range even further. • A broad range of flexible options for withdrawing your money at retirement. SIPP Cons: • Set up fees are typical and can be costly. • Additional admin charges often apply for things like linking to third party platforms or simply taking benefits at retirement. • No maximum cap on ongoing charges. SIPP: The Verdict The SIPP is a powerful option for those with financial knowledge and sufficient wealth to justify the increased costs. Investors have the opportunity to benefit from improved returns thanks to the increased flexibility on offer. Individuals with modest or midrange pension savings will likely see the increased charges significantly eating into any potential returns.
The Directors Pension: Small Self-Administered Scheme (SSAS) Set up by limited company directors for specified employees, this trust-based occupational pension is designed for groups of individuals who run a common business.
SSAS Pros: • Investment flexibility & control, offering a broad range of investment options, including: • the ability to invest in direct equities • the ability to invest in commercial property • the ability to invest in fixed-rate deposit accounts. • Commercial property held within a SSAS is exempt from Capital Gains Tax on final sale. • Depending on the number of scheme members, the ongoing cost per member can be lower than holding an individual SIPP. SSAS Cons: • Not cost effective for companies with only a small number of employees. • Legal reporting responsibilities, management and administration tend to be very hands-on and time consuming. • Each member must be a trustee and must agree to investment decisions. • Assets are pooled, which can make it difficult when individual members have different risk profiles. • Keeping individual finances discreet can be difficult and there can be investment delays. SSAS: The Verdict A SSAS can be a valuable option for businesses with multiple employees. However, it’s not an option that suits most individual people.
Learn more about which pension is best for you. Contact Wise Investment. wise@wiseinvestment.co.uk www. wiseinvestment.co.uk 01608 695100
Important Information The above information is for educational purposes and is not a personal recommendation or investment advice. Content is accurate at the time of writing and tax limits may change. If you are unsure about the suitability of a particular investment you should speak to an authorised financial adviser. The value of investments can go down as well as up. Wise Investment is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA 230553). Registered Office: The Great Barn, Chalford Park Barns, Oxford Road, Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire, OX7 5QR. Registered in England 4970458
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Children & Mental Health
The
Cotswold Sky International Space Station (Courtesy of NASA) It may surprise the reader but today there are over 8,000 satellites orbiting the Earth of which just under 50% are no longer active. What is more surprising is that the number of satellites may rise to 40,000 in the next few years. What do satellites do? A multitude of tasks including spying, providing communications including the internet, mapping the world and weather forecasting. Why is there such an increase? Private companies are finding the cost of developing and manufacturing satellites within their financial reach. What happens to a satellite when it’s life expires? Sadly, there is no internationally agreed plan of retrieving obsolete satellites, so they continue orbiting the Earth. However; Amazon one of the companies involved has disclosed plans to deorbit their satellites within 355 days following mission completion. Should other countries and companies, follow suit then this will help relieve a potentially dangerous situation How much debris is orbiting our Earth? The figures are mind boggling, there are presently an estimated 128 million pieces of debris orbiting the Earth. Of these around 34,000 are over 4 inches in size (figures obtained from the Natural History Museum in London). Space debris can be caused by prolonged exposure to intense ultra violet radiation as well as the collisions of satellites. In June 2021 the International Space Station
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The Pollution of Space
was struck by a piece of debris that punctured a hold in a robotic arm, fortunately none of the astronauts were harmed. Of course, the main concern for those of us on Earth is that of a spent satellite re-entering the Earth’s atmosphere and crashing on a populated area even though they are designed to break up on re-entry.
What of the future? The launch of ELSA-d is a small but significant step in cleaning up space debris. Let us hope it is not too little too late. For further information: www.astroscale.com/astroscalecelebrates-successful-launch-ofelsa-d www.space.com/how-many-satellites-are-orbiting-earth https://www.livescience.com/howmany-satellites-orbit-earth#: Spring Equinox: Sunday 20th March at 15.33 hours Meteorite Showers: Lyrid Meteor Showers peak on the 22nd April. Mercury Not observable until 29th April in the early evening sky. Venus Visibility declines in early mornings of March, but can still be observed towards the south east horizon throughout April. Mars Not the clearest planet to be seen but can be identified to the right of the brighter Venus during the early mornings of March and April. Jupiter Not observable during March but towards the end of April will be seen close to Venus in the early mornings. Saturn Starts to emerge in the pre-dawn sky towards the end of March forming a small triangle along with Venus and Mars. Throughout April it continues to climb higher by the time sunrise arrives. John Harris
Some years ago, we would not have seen any articles on mental health due to the age we then lived, when the subject was taboo. Alas mental health issues were probably as prevalent amongst children those many years ago as they are today.
iour will give an indication, particularly if the youngster’s happiness is also affected. These are some of the signs when parents need to address the situation.
Resources
Fortunately, in today’s age of the internet there are a multitude of free resources to help the child, parent, teacher or any other person suffering from mental illness, but the first port of call must be the doctor. Good
The situation has been exacerbated by the pandemic when families were confined to their homes and children educated online with varied success rates. In fact, some of the online education contributed towards mental health issues. A survey carried out by YouGov looked at the key Image above courtesy of: facebook.com/childrensmentalhealthrocks sources of anxiety in sources of guidance can be found young people and found that over on the internet for example www. one in four(26%) schoolchildren stem4.org.uk/resources which supaged between 10 and 15 are worried ports teenage mental health. Here or sad about their families not having you will find leaflets and booklets sufficient money. This equates to for teenagers to guide and advise above 1 million children throughout on what steps to take. In addition, the country, more research needs to schools will have an active mental be carried out on this issue alone. health policy and an appointed
What is Mental Illness?
Most youngsters who suffer from mental illness do so in very different ways. It can be diagnosed as a disorder of the mind and includes anxiety, depression, eating, addiction, self-harm and personality to name but a few. How does a parent identify a problem with the child? Marked swings in mood and behav-
Designated Safeguarding Leader. No doubt they will support you all the way to seeing your child recover from their issues. References: https://stem4.org.uk/ https://www.facebook.com/childrensmentalhealthrocks/ John Harris
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Rissingtons Local History Society Friday 11th March @7.30pm. “William Morris and the car industry in Oxford” Alastair Lack - an Oxford Guide – will talk on the life of William Morris and the history of his company, culminating in the
present BMW works in Cowley. Visitors welcome £3.50 to include refreshments. Enquiries - information.RLHS@ gmail.com / 01451 820233 Venue: Upper Rissington Village Hall GL54 2QW
LIVE MUSIC
The Alvin Roy Jazz Quartet play the first Friday of the Month, every Month and starting on 4th March at 8 pm at The Five Alls, Filkins GL7 3JQ. Free entrance.
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Our Future’s Electric If you spend any time on the roads of West Oxfordshire, you’ll have noticed the increasing number of cars with a green registration plate. These were introduced on 8th December 2020 and denote zero emission vehicles – mostly electric vehicles. This hasn’t gone unnoticed at ChipsAway Carderick, either: ‘The government’s keen to get more electric vehicles on the road and, whether it’s that or another technology, it’s plain that we all need to be reducing our carbon footprint,’ says Lee Broderick, Managing Director of ChipsAway Carderick. ‘As with any new technology, though, it comes with its own challenges and it’s important to us that we do things properly. An electric vehicle may look the same on the outside but it’s very different on the inside and as professionals we have to be aware of that. Up until the end of last year, we refused to work on electric or hybrid vehicles due to safety concerns for our technicians and technical concerns
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about our customers’ cars. ‘Obviously we don’t want to be turning work away, and neither do we want to be letting down our existing customers or, worse still, perhaps even driving them into the arms of less scrupulous businesses. With that in mind, I’m very pleased that all of our staff have now completed City and Guilds training for Electric Vehicle safety. In practical terms, it means that our technicians are qualified to assess the danger presented by High Voltage cables present on electric and hybrid vehicles and perform a safe shutdown and restart on the vehicles if necessary. This protects them from potential fatality and it also protects our customer’s cars from potential technical malfunctions. ‘We’re ready for the future, now,’ continues Lee. ‘We’re looking forward to providing our customers with zero emissions vehicles the same level of service and care that we do all our other customers.’
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Index Bathrooms Country Bathrooms: p4 Blinds Associated Blinds: p16 Builders & Contractors Country Roofing & Building Contractors: p4 Garolla Garage Doors: p12 Wychwood Oak Frame Buildings: p12 Children’s Services Cotswold Tutor: p8 Education Cotswold Tutor: p8 Sibford School: p3 Elderly Services Bluebird Care: p15
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Electrical Services Aerial Solutions: p9 Cox Electrical Services: p14 Mayday Aerials: p9 Finance LPA Today: p5 Wise Investments: p2 & p6 Furniture Amanda Hanley By Design: p1 Bob Dadge Carpentry: p9 Paul Dadge: p2 Garage Doors Garolla Garage Doors: p12 Gardening & Outdoors CN Landscapes: p13 Stockwell Davies Tree Contractors: p13
Tom Negus Tree Care: p13 Waterside Landscaping: p13 Gifts Cotswold Frames: p9 Glass Chips Away: p12 CN Glass: p1 Healthcare & Wellbeing Cherwell Hospital: p11 Cotswold Deep Tissue Massage: p11 Cotswold Foot Clinic: p11 Footworx Clinic: p10 Home & Interiors Amanda Hanley By Design: p1 Andy Bennett Upholstery: p9 Associated Blinds: p16
Bob Dadge Carpentry: p9 Country Bathrooms: p4 Paul Dadge: p2 Rooflight Company: p3 Kitchens & Bathrooms Country Bathrooms: p4 Motoring Chips Away: p12 Plumbing Gas & Oil Heating: p4 Property Maintenance CN Glass: p1 Country Roofing & Building Contractors: p4 Garolla Garage Doors: p12 Recruitment Burford Garden Centre: p5
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Sport & Leisure Cotswold Riding: p10 GLL/Better: p10 Sound & Vision Mayday Aerials: p9 Tree Surgery Stockwell Davies Tree Contractors: p13 Tom Negus Tree Care: p13 Tuition Cotswold Tutor: p8 Windows CN Glass: p1 Rooflight Company: p3
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