It is over 100 years since Ivy Williams became the first woman called to the Bar of England and Wales, and Helena Normanton became the first woman to practise as a barrister, in 1922. It is 50 years since women were permitted to open bank accounts in their own right, under the Sex Discrimination Act 1975. Today, women in the UK have full financial freedom and with it, the power and opportunity to achieve their goals. Yet, Bar Council research reports women’s median earnings are 13% behind men’s in the early years of practice.1 How can financial planning help to bridge that gap? What action can we take?

Financial protection

The foundations of your financial plan should be financial protection, supporting you when the unexpected occurs, keeping you and your family on track. With a 41% chance of a woman being unable to work for two months,2 and for self-employed barristers without sick pay, this highlights how likely you are during your lifetime to need to rely on the different products under this umbrella. Yet, only 11% of women hold or are applying for income protection,3 despite it potentially costing no more than a daily cup of coffee. Do you have a financial protection gap; what’s your plan B?

Investments

Men might have higher earnings and are more likely to be investors, but research has found that women are more successful when investing; they thought longer term, traded less frequently and avoided riskier investments.4 So, why aren’t women using our instinctive investment skills to our advantage? Simply, we are overweighted in cash. While there will always be a place for cash-based accounts in our financial plan, we aren’t using investments when appropriate. What model are you following for managing your cash and investments? Are you using tax-efficient products where suitable?

Pensions

By retirement, the average size of a woman’s pension pot is half that of a man’s.5 Whether due to saving less, different investment strategies, or career breaks, it presents a problem – women need the same amount of money to have a comfortable retirement, currently estimated to cost a single person £43,100p/a.6 Although we might consider pensions an afterthought during our working lives – a concern for our future selves – there are at least three reasons why we should start saving now:

  1. The state pension’s uncertain future – it may not be there when we need it;
  2. The benefit of compound interest – the earlier you start saving the easier it is to create the retirement lifestyle you want; and
  3. Tax relief – as high earners, alongside saving for your future, you can reduce your liability to income tax along the way.

Inheritance Tax (IHT) Planning

Inheritance tax receipts for April to December 2024 were £6.3 billion.7 Having worked hard throughout your life, do you really want to leave more to HMRC than your chosen beneficiaries? Especially when it’s a voluntary tax and, with careful planning, can be mitigated. With the opportunity to pass our wealth on to our beneficiaries, why wouldn’t you want to give them the best possible start in life and help bridge the gap across generations?

The value of advice

When you work with a financial adviser, we review your financial circumstances, needs and objectives; ensure that gaps in your financial protection are addressed; work with you to build a bespoke model for investments and cash savings, so your assets are appropriately diversified and have the best possible chance to grow; help build good habits with pension savings, ensuring you’re within your allowances and benefit from tax relief available to you; and monitor your estate, identifying any IHT liability, and working with you to address this through trust, investment and protection solutions.

So, take action, benefit from our advice and book a 30-minute initial consultation. Together, we can begin to bridge the financial planning gender gap. 

Tel: 01962 353153

Email: enquiries-westgate@sjpp.co.uk

Web: www.westgatewealth.co.uk/specialist-advice/the-bar

References: (1) Bar Council, ‘Mind the early gender earnings gap at the Bar’, 2024; (2) Figures from LV= Risk Reality Calculator, based on a 40-year-old, non-smoking woman retiring at age 68, accessed February 2025; (3) The Exeter, ‘A Gender Savings Gap’, Health & Financial Fears Report 2023; (4) Warwick Business School, ‘Are women better investors than men?’, 2018; (5) Legal & General, ‘Gender Pension Gap’, 2024; (6) Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association/Loughborough University, ‘Retirement Living Standards in the UK in 2023’, 2024; (7) www.gov.uk. References accessed in February 2025. SJP Approved 24/02/2025