KirstyChoose Region
Kirsty McGaun
IFA & Business Development Manager Area Covered: West EnglandKirsty has been a financial adviser since 1998, starting her career with Medical Sickness. She opted to maintain her medical and dental speciality and became a fully independent financial adviser on joining Legal & Medical Investments in 2004, where she is both an IFA and has shared responsibility for editing the company newsletter.
Kirsty holds the Diploma for Financial Advisers (DipFA®), the Mortgage Advice Qualification (MAQ) and the Financial Planning Certificate (FPC®) qualifications. She also continues to study for financial exams to ensure her knowledge is up-to-date and her expert financial advice is pertinent to her clients’ needs.
Outside of work, Kirsty loves being with her two daughters and keeping fit by running, helping to run and coach at the local junior netball club, skiing with greater enthusiasm than skill, and taking long dog walks. She also loves travelling and spending time with family and friends.
You’ll never hear Kirsty say: No more Green & Blacks for me thanks. I don’t really like the stuff!
Scroll down to see Kirsty’s most recent blog posts.
What's new by Kirsty
Your 6-Step Financial Reset for 2025
Anyone working in the NHS must be adept at managing change, but even the most skilled professionals may have felt…
Write a Will for Free: 10 Reasons You Need One
Research by Will Aid has found only half of UK adults have made a will and shockingly over two-thirds of…
Student Finance: Let’s get up to speed
The new school year is in full swing, and soon Year 13 students will be coming home eager to discuss…
Why October 2024 is so important for Annual Allowance
October 2024 is a crucial period due to the McCloud Remedy re-calculations which could potentially impact your Annual Allowance. The…
Is it STILL a good idea to make your children shareholders of your private limited company?
If you’re a shareholder of a private limited company, traditionally spreading the ownership and therefore dividends around the family offered…
What does the Bank of England interest rate drop mean for you?
The recent 0.25% drop in the Bank of England base rate made on 1st August was far from a foregone…
6 ways to unlock the tax benefits of giving to charity in the UK
Thanks to various tax benefits available in the UK, charitable giving can be a financially savvy decision. Regardless of whether…
Which is the ‘best’ career? Medicine or dentistry?
Recently, several clients have mentioned trying to dissuade their children from following in their career footsteps. This prompted me to…
NHS car leasing – highway to heaven or road to hell?
At first glance leasing a car through NHS Fleet Services looks attractive. As an NHS professional, you could get a…
The minimum retirement age is changing: how this impacts your retirement plans
With the recent focus on NHS pension scheme changes, doctors and dentists may still need to catch up on some…
7 Budget Headlines 2024
It was not an exciting, surprise-packed budget. However, the budget did bring some good news for many while leaving other…
NHS McCloud Remedy: Contingent decisions
It’s confirmed! Over 1 million members, deferred members and pensioners of the NHS pension scheme are affected by the McCloud…
Could an offset mortgage suit you?
Spring is approaching, and for many, this time of year signifies a pivotal time to buy or sell your home….
What happens to your private pensions when you die?
We have covered death in service benefits in the NHS pensions scheme in previous articles, but what happens to your…
Understanding your Total Reward Statement (TRS)
You have probably heard about your NHS Total Reward Statement (TRS), but are you unsure what it actually represents? You…
How to relieve the financial cost of raising a child
In 2022, the estimated cost of raising a child from birth to age 18 was a massive £202,660. If you…
NHS pension scheme partial retirement – are you eligible?
As discussed in a previous article the NHS pension scheme is changing their partial retirement options available. As always with…
NHS pension scheme pays deadline is looming – act now!
Before our minds focus on enjoying the summer, there is an important NHS pension deadline fast approaching, a deadline many…
The drama continues with the NHS pension scheme
If the NHS pension scheme was a fictional organisation in a TV drama, I am sure the current plot with…
NHS pension scheme:Flexible retirement rules to change in April 2023
As of April 2023, it is proposed that members of the 1995 and 2008 sections of the NHS pension scheme…
Update on NHS pension rule changes: Annual allowance inflation revaluation
Finally, we have some good news about your NHS pension scheme and annual allowance, as the government is expected to…
Who will be paying for the McCloud Remedy? It could be you…
Most NHS pension scheme members are aware of the McCloud Remedy and the government’s decision to remove age discrimination to…
NHS pension scheme annual allowance statement errors identified
The NHS has confirmed over 2800 NHS pension scheme statements have been identified as having errors. The error affects statements…
It’s a new tax year! Let’s set the basics
Normally, with a new tax year comes a feeling of renewed optimism, however, I sense this year things are different….
Are you up to speed with ISAs?
ISAs have changed a lot in the last few years, however, they remain one of the most tax-efficient and flexible…
As a new GP Partner can you get a Mortgage?
As a doctor or dentist in hospital service or an NHS practice, mortgages are relatively simple to arrange. New job…
Is your pension pot smaller than your colleagues or partner?
If you just answered yes to that question, chances are you are female. There are many great aspects about a…
Who gets your NHS pension benefits when you die?
Most NHS pension scheme members focus on the retirement fund that comes with their pension. But did you know that…
Budget 2021: The key headlines
With the Budget firmly on everyone’s mind, we pick out the key headlines with relevance to financial planning. More detailed…
Why knowing your NHS pension section matters
Knowing which section of your NHS pension scheme you are a member of is important; 1995, 2008 or the 2015…
New Year, renewed financial focus!
For most, this has been the hardest, loneliest Christmas, filled with nothing but the same 4 walls and for many…
The strangest Christmas for a generation
Never has a generation been so united with one Christmas wish – a world without Covid! Finally, we see glimmers…
Why income protection is a vital tool in your financial toolbox
Recently we have been receiving more and more enquiries from doctors and dentists about protection and in particular, income protection…
Achieve a positive return to the new normal
Many of our clients have had their finances brought into sharp focus by recent global events. I don’t think there…
7 Government financial schemes that could benefit dentists & locums
The impact and disruption coronavirus has caused in all our lives is clearly huge – the world has virtually ground…
From tax to buzz cuts, things to do during self-isolation
There is no doubt, these are very challenging times for the whole country, but no more so than for YOU,…
The Christmas gift your child didn’t even know they wanted!
Christmas is a time of joy, the season for giving and spoiling our children with gifts. There’s nothing better than…
Will you get paid if you are too ill to work?
As a doctor or dentist, your career is spent caring for patients in ill health or after an accident. But…
Work until I’m 67! How can I afford not to?
Many of us are looking down the barrel of our ‘normal retirement age’ being 67. A chilling thought. One that…
7 money saving, stress relieving summer holiday tips
As you frantically try to finish off work, put the dog into kennels, fling swimsuits, flip-flops and an array of…
8 top tips for getting a mortgage – even if you are a locum!
Applying for a mortgage is reasonably straightforward for most NHS doctors and dentists. But what if you are a locum?…
A refreshing start to a new tax year
Who would have thought summarising a new tax year would feel like a little light relief? For a change, we…
Top 10 actual excuses for submitting a tax return late
As the deadline for the filing of our tax returns thunders towards us, hopefully you can smile slightly smugly knowing…
Think outside the box this Christmas
There are few sentences I find more terrifying when uttered by my big sister than “Please don’t buy me a…
Are NHS medics being penalised for working part-time?
What doctor or dentist doesn’t find the better, more varied work/life balance of part-time working enticing? Of course one of…
5 financial tips to make a locum’s life less complicated
Being a locum has many advantages. Greater flexibility, autonomy and variety, but there are some disadvantages too. Peaks and troughs…
NHS Pension Scheme starts charging for information!
With the recent changes to both the lifetime and annual pension allowances, it’s imperative that medics of all ages get…