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FPA at the forefront of professional development
19 November 2009
The Financial Planning Association of Australia (FPA) today launched an ‘Estate Planning’ professional designation program to meet a growing demand in specialised skills for financial planners.
The program was launched at the FPA 2009 Annual National Conference in Melbourne today and it was developed because FPA members have expressed a great deal of interest in improving their knowledge base to better service their clients.
Jo-Anne Bloch, FPA CEO said today “Interest in Estate Planning is on the rise because client are aging and are thinking about intergenerational financial planning services.
The FPA recently conducted research of 400 practitioner members, revealing that 84% believe that there is a need for specialist skills and knowledge in estate planning. 60% of the sample also said that they would undertake studies in estate planning if offered.
“Both the FPA and the Financial Planning Standards Board (FPSB) recognise Estate Planning as a specialist practice focus for financial planners and understand the need for specialised training in this field.” Ms Bloch added.
The program has been developed in collaboration with the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) and Est Plan. It has also been structured to meet the Society of Trust and Estate Planning (STEP) practitioners’ criteria. The professional designation comprises three stages:
- Workshops – run in conjunction with Est Plan
- UTS program – A joint venture between the FPA and the University of Technology Sydney
- FPA professional certification – certification as a specialist in Estate Planning.
FPA Members are able to complete the high level workshop designed by the FPA and Est Plan as a precursor to the UTS program. This workshop will help identify opportunities, and it will help practitioners determine whether they want to or need to develop further skills.
The UTS program involves a joint venture with the FPA that allows enrolment into the specialist University short course and potential exemption for further studies in Law should participants choose to expand their qualifications.
The FPA will be providing more detailed information to members about the work shops and UTS program in January 2010.
“Earlier this year, the FPA launched Life Risk for specialist risk advisers or CFP practitioners wanting to improve their qualifications.
“As the peak professional body, the FPA understands the need for quality, specialised financial planners and is committed to providing its members with professional continuing education and training.”
Just as with all FPA professional designations, the Estate Planning specialist designation can only be issued after the satisfaction of our 4 E’s certification process.
For further information, refer to media contacts
Note to journalists
The Financial Planning Association of Australia (FPA) is the peak professional body for financial planning in Australia. The FPA has an office in each capital city and a network of 31 Chapters across the country, which provide a focus for business networking and professional development activities for more than 12,000 members. FPA practitioner members manage the financial affairs of more than 5 million Australians whose investments are valued at $630 billion.
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