Relax – you’re in safe hands

our Guiding principles

We launched William James with one aim – to provide the best possible service to our clients.

With a wealth of experience in the financial services sector, we saw that change was needed, so we are now leading the way in modernising how the sector works.

We will always give our clients the best advice. We’re totally independent, so we can offer the most suitable solutions and services to reach our clients’ goals.

We know that to give clients the best advice we need to understand their goals and ambitions, so we work hard to build a strong relationship with our clients that results in successful outcomes for all.

Meet the team

philip stepp

Managing Director

Philip founded the Newell Palmer group in 1993, which became one of the largest Independent Financial Advisers in the UK.

In 2016 Financial Times-Adviser ranked the business in the top 50 largest Financial Adviser firms in the UK. Under Philip’s stewardship the business had a reputation for providing high quality, bespoke independent financial advice. The business was acquired by Ascot Lloyd in December 2018.

Philip believes there is a better way to operate a modern socially responsible financial services advisory firm and that putting clients and staff at the heart of everything creates the foundation to build from.

matthew kidd

Independent Financial Adviser

Matthew entered the financial services sector in 1993.

He joined Philip at the Newell Palmer Group in 1999 where, as well as building strong relationships with clients to provide financial advice, he also helped build and grow the business through a carefully structured acquisition programme.

Matthew wanted to set up a new, modern, high quality independent financial advisory firm which embraces new technologies and communication to support clients and employees.

Advisers

Aaron Dakin

Aaron has been a professional in the financial services industry since 2018. Combined with a background in accounting, Aaron has a keen eye for detail and has gained extensive experience with managing financial matters.
Having joined us as an Independent Financial Adviser, Aaron works closely with clients, understanding their unique aspirations and creating personalised strategies to help them achieve their financial goals. Aaron enjoys the process of guiding clients through various financial options and helping them navigate the complex landscape of financial planning, so that they are well-informed to make sound financial decisions.

JEREMY BAUGH

With a career spanning more than 25 years, Jeremy has dedicated himself to helping individuals achieve their financial goals. Jeremy’s expertise lies in comprehensive financial planning and advising on investment solutions that meet his clients' needs. He prides himself on building long-term relationships with clients, having helped the vast majority for up to 20 years.
Jeremy believes in an all-round approach when providing advice, from protecting the family to tax planning. He also undertakes corporate work advising small businesses on pension planning.

Jenny has worked with Philip since 1997 as an Independent Financial Adviser, initially providing specialised advice to small business, in particular around SSAS and SIPP pension schemes.
Currently Jenny enjoys advising in the corporate market and also provides advice on pensions, Inheritance Tax planning, family and business protection and wealth advice. She builds fabulous relationships with her clients, some of whom have been with her for many years and works to help them to identify their needs and plan to achieve their goals.

Jenny Hubble

Chris has been an IFA since 1992 and has many loyal clients that he has advised for 20 to 30 years, reflecting the quality of his advice and service. Chris specialises in providing technical advice to high net-worth clients in the areas of investment, pensions and inheritance tax planning.
Chris was previously a director and Investment Committee member at Newell Palmer, but the opportunity to join Philip and Matthew in building a boutique IFA practice that focuses on putting the client first in all that they do is one that he could not let him pass him by.

Chris Stevens

sam gregory

Sam has been working in financial services since 2004 and as an IFA for the past 12 years.
He has experience in a wide range of financial planning areas; he particularly likes helping clients to achieve their retirement goals through planning to provide a tax efficient income at their target retirement age.
Sam likes helping clients to understand complex financial issues so that they can make informed decisions on financial matters, such as how their funds are invested and the impact on their personal tax position.

Hayley Bayliss-cotton

Hayley embarked on her financial services career in 2010, immediately after graduating from university. Having enjoyed working with several of the team before, she is delighted to have joined William James recently as an independent financial adviser.
As a Chartered Financial Planner and Fellow of the Personal Finance Society, Hayley has both the knowledge and expertise to provide comprehensive guidance across the whole range of financial planning matters. Her clients consistently commend Hayley for her natural ability to simplify complex financial concepts, making them accessible and easy to understand.

Paraplanners

Angela has almost 20 years’ experience as a Paraplanner with a variety of organisations. This has given extensive knowledge and experience in all areas of financial planning as well as more specialised areas such as Trusts, Retirement Planning and SSAS/SIPP work. Angela enjoys working closely with Financial Advisers to find the optimal solution for a client’s needs and objectives.

ANGELA FAcer

Amie has worked in the financial services sector since 2017 and has been a Paraplanner for five years. She enjoys the variety offered by the role and the opportunity to help clients meet their financial objectives, and ultimately make the most of their finances through careful planning and investment.
Amie has the Diploma for Financial Advisers, CII Certificate in Paraplanning and is now working towards becoming CII Chartered.

Amie Wood

Julie Wycherley

Julie has worked in financial services since 2008, with experience as a paraplanner in two previous roles. She has extensive experience in many areas of financial planning.
Julie enjoys the variety offered by the role and working with financial planners to ensure the best outcome for clients.

Lauren Furnival

Lauren has worked in the financial services industry since 2010, gaining a wealth of knowledge and experience. She has recently achieved one of her career goals by stepping into a trainee Paraplanner role and is working towards becoming Diploma qualified. Lauren enjoys the varied nature of her role and prides herself on providing the best possible client service.

support

Fenella Phillips

Fenella has worked in Financial Services for a variety of organisations since 1997. She is focused on building excellent working relationships with clients by offering a much valued and personable appointment service, ensuring both client satisfaction and retention. Having worked with Philip and Matthew previously, she is delighted to have joined them again at William James as a Client Care Adviser.

THOMAS KELLY

Thomas started his Financial Services career in Banking in 1989 and after several years working as a Financial Adviser he settled on a career within the Technical and Operational area.
He has held roles as Head of Operations for both a pension provider business as well as a Financial Advice business, giving him a broad experience of operating within a regulatory environment.
Thomas has developed his technical and operational skills throughout his career and is keen to help build the operational and regulatory framework at William James. He sees that a blend of developing people, implementing process improvements and utilising the right technology will help the business grow and provide clients with an excellent and valued service.

isabella cooper

Isabella has been working in Financial Services for more than three years. She especially enjoys liaising with clients and takes pride in ensuring their needs are met in the most efficient and effective way possible.

Nick Cotton

With a wealth of experience from his previous role as an administrator in the debt management department at RBS, Nick brings a strong foundation in financial services to his new role supporting our independent financial advisers. He enjoys the ever-evolving nature of the industry, priding himself on his flexibility and problem-solving skills.
Already holding the certificate in Mortgage Advice and Practice, Nick is now studying for the Diploma for Financial Planning.

laura Pugh

Laura has spent more than 15 years working in financial services. She is currently studying and has completed her RO1 and FA2 exams. Outside of work, Laura has a toddler who likes to keep her extremely busy!

Shante Jennies

Shante has extensive experience gained from a career working with a number of financial services companies. She has joined us as a Financial Administrator, ensuring the smooth running of our client services.

trusted independent advisers

Our team of trusted financial advisers support our clients to achieve their goals.

We get to know our clients, making sure we understand their situation and ambitions, as well as their appetite for risk. We make recommendations designed to meet those goals, making the most of all the options available to grow our clients’ wealth.

We keep clients’ plans under regular review, making sure they respond to the financial climate, or changes in their needs and goals.

We communicate clearly and openly and provide access to documents at any time through our secure portal.

Our advisers are experts, fully up to date with the latest financial regulations and options available and all focused on helping clients to achieve their goals.

What our clients say about us:

I’ve known Philip since 1991 when he became my former company’s financial adviser, making us one of his very first clients in his previously owned Wolverhampton business. As I got to know Phillip, I asked him to look after my personal pension as both corporate and personal financial advice are very big decisions, so it was most important to me that I had the right company.

As a client for over 25 years now, I would personally recommend any company headed by Phillip Stepp, therefore, I have complete trust and confidence in William James Financial Services Ltd.

Frank B

corporate social responsibility

At William James, we’re always conscious of the impact we have on our environment, people and communities.

We aim to minimise our impact on the environment. We encourage the use of both electric and hybrid vehicles where possible and the usage of public transport when it is suitable to do so and we’ve minimised the amount of energy and materials we use. Our energy comes from a green supplier and we recycle as much business waste as possible.

We support our employees to work in a way which suits them and our business, including supporting flexible hybrid working and we are an equal opportunities employer. We encourage internships and apprenticeships.

We recognise the importance of socially responsible investing and can provide advice on sustainable investments as part of our service.

REgulatory information

William James Financial Services Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

The guidance and/or advice contained in this website is subject to UK regulatory regime and is therefore restricted to consumers based in the UK.

The Financial Ombudsman Service is available to sort out individual complaints that clients and financial services businesses aren't able to resolve themselves. To contact the Financial Ombudsman Service please visit www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk.

Contact us

If you like what you see we’d love to talk to you about how we can help you to achieve your goals and ambitions. Just click on the button to complete our enquiry form and we’ll call you at a time that suits you.