Introduction
Investing
for life
Investing can feel complicated and intimidating. We understand the responsibility it carries and the importance of getting it right from the outset.
We take the time to understand what’s important to you – your goals, values and priorities. This ensures your investments are purposeful and support your wider financial plan, leaving you feeling confident that your money is working meaningfully towards the future you want.
We will help you understand why you are investing, how to invest and importantly, we will be by your side to not only put your investment plan into action, but to support you throughout your investment journey.
How we help
About Investment Management
What is Investment Management?
Investment management is about making sensible decisions that you can stick to. Decisions which aim to help you to achieve your objectives, whilst managing risk to a level you feel comfortable with.
It should be evidence-led and aligned to your views around risk, people and the planet.
Investment management is not just a set and forget exercise however. Life changes, as does the world around us. Our Investment Committee regularly reviews the evidence behind our investment strategies. We have a robust governance process in place which can give you confidence in our approach.
Why does Investment Management matter?
Successful long-term investing often means navigating hard times. We use specialist tools developed by behavioural finance scientists to help you understand how you think about money and make financial decisions. Knowing this we can better help you implement strategies which you can stick to – in the good times and the hard!
Who is Investment Management for?
It is probably for people like you. People who want to achieve a return from their money in support of their goals, who are willing to take onboard some risk to do so.
You may be someone who does not have the time, or inclination, to manage your investments. Alternatively, you may be passionate about all things investing.
You may come from a finance background or have no knowledge and experience.
Whether you’re just starting your investment journey, feel confident in your understanding, or are somewhere in between.
Whoever you are and whatever stage you are at, our investment management service can help provide you with clarity and peace of mind.
We work with people from all kinds of backgrounds, as well as professionals such as trustees and charities.
*Investing places your capital at risk and the values of investments can go down as well as up. Cashflow and Tax Planning are not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
We can help with:
Aligning your investments with your views and circumstances
- PN Traditional
- PN Responsible
- PN Intentional
We will work with you to identify how you may want to invest, whilst making sure you understand the potential risks and trade-offs involved.
Future goals and plans
We look at your future goals and plans and then the complex factors that affect our finances, such as maintaining an adequate emergency fund, school fee planning, or later-life care. We aim to reduce risk without lowering returns*. Once we start the process of building your investment strategy, your most important decision is creating a blend of assets, rather than choosing one fund or shares in one company.
Still have questions or want to know more?
Ready to talk about the future?
Let’s get your money working together.
Values
Why choose Paradigm Norton?
With an experienced team who are dedicated to providing the highest level of service, you’re in safe hands.
When you work with us, we take the time to understand your goals and priorities, ensuring every investment decision is made with clarity, confidence and purpose.
As one of the largest independent financial planning companies in England, serving more than 1,000 clients, we’re not just Chartered Financial Planners… we’re tried and tested financial partners.
Money matters, but life matters more. Our motto bleeds into everything that we do, from connecting you to responsible investment strategies to enabling you to build a brighter future, with a lighter footprint.
As a Certified B Corporation®, we balance profit with purpose, people and the environment.
Real stories
Celebrating our clients
Charlie wanted to make sure his investments were working for him so that he could spend his time concentrating on his music career. Here Charlie shares with us his love and passion for life, music, family and his incredible journey working with the legendary Robert Plant, Goldfrapp and others.
Team
Meet our experts
Your financial plan will be tailored to your particular circumstances, but it can adapt and grow. Change is a constant: life changes, circumstances change and reality doesn’t always match our expectations. Our experienced team will proactively keep you on course.
Hannah Nolan
Senior Financial Planner
Tom Desborough
Client Manager
Simon Livings
Client Manager
Richard Gray
Client Director
Farida Hassanali
Client Manager
Mia Smith
Senior Financial Planner
Tommy Watson
Regional Director
Katie Wright
Senior Financial Planner
David Burridge
Regional Director
Paul Cardinal
Client Manager
Chelsea Holmes
Client Manager
Lee Dunn
Client Director/Head of Investments
Matt Goddard
Client Manager
Paul Hardinges
Client Manager
Caroline Leech
Client Manager
Daniel Limb
Client Manager
Sally Matthews
Client Manager
Rohan Patel
Client Manager
William Pratt
Client Director
Tracey Reed
Regional Director
Read
Brochure
Free financial planning resources
Helpful tools and guides to start planning your financial future with confidence.
Questions
Investment Mangement FAQs
Have a question about investment management? Our experienced team have put together some insightful guidance below:
What is your approach to investing and financial returns?
Investing is an integral part of implementing any financial plan. We have long believed in the rewards of adopting a systematic, evidence-based, approach to long-term investing.
When it comes to investment planning*, we know that one size does not fit all and recognise a growing demand for an approach that aligns with our B Corp mission.
Our core Paradigm Norton Responsible (PNr) portfolios seek to partner with fund managers to make effective use of your shareholder voice. They engage on your behalf on a variety of issues such as good governance, and impact on society and the environment. Companies who won’t, don’t, or can’t engage will typically form a smaller part of your portfolio.
This approach is taken a step further for clients using our Paradigm Norton Intentional (PNi) portfolios which include funds which set out to address some of the challenges raised by the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Our investment committee work with industry experts and follows a rigorous fund selection process to piece together each of our portfolios. Our planning teams work together with our clients to help choose the option that best meets their individual needs and preferences.
How do you make sure portfolios are behaving as expected?
There are two key words in this question – behaving and expected. We design diversified portfolios to help participate in increases in share prices whilst trying to smooth out the range of returns. We invest in different parts of stock markets and asset types which should behave differently. This should mean that if one part is experiencing challenges another might be performing better. This smooths out your investment journey.
We use data to understand what a ‘normal’ range of outcomes might be in terms of risk and returns. Normal investing involves risk and you should expect to see the value of your portfolio go down as well as up. We’ll take time to agree what level of investment risk and movement you’re comfortable with, so your portfolio supports your goals in a way that feels right and tailored for you.
We monitor our model portfolios on an ongoing basis to ensure that how they are performing aligns with what they are designed to do. This involves a considered and robust process that takes account of changing market conditions.
How often do you rebalance portfolios?
With investments typically being held for at least five years, and often much longer, it is important to make sure that the portfolio you invested in on day one retains its characteristics. Over time, not all parts of your portfolio will move in the same way, and this can naturally change how it looks overall. It is important to rebalance your portfolio regularly and we will generally look to do this once a year.
Our ongoing monitoring will identify if investment drift means that the portfolios are hitting their guardrails. It could be that one part of the portfolio has performed much better than the rest and now represents a much bigger part of the portfolio than intended. This might mean that the portfolio becomes too cautious or too risky. If this happens, we will consider whether it is appropriate, considering this and other factors such as costs, to rebalance portfolios to bring it back into line at that time.
Do you seek to take advantage of short-term opportunities?
We believe that most of a portfolio’s performance can be explained by its asset allocation. The long-term asset allocation of our portfolios is informed by science and seeks to combine exposure to the whole market with areas of higher expected returns. This is called a strategic asset allocation.
Some investment managers will seek to make a judgment call about what they see as potential opportunities in the short term. They might feel that a particular region or asset class is likely to perform particularly well, or that the market has mispriced it. This is called a tactical asset allocation and sits on top of the strategic asset allocation. It seeks to take advantage of these perceived short-term opportunities.
We do not apply a tactical asset allocation to our portfolios. We believe that markets are efficient and that share prices (which are the product of trades from thousands of investors) are a good guide to the fair value of a company. It is not, in our opinion, likely that someone can reliably and repeatably make ‘the right’ short term judgements required to make tactical asset allocation work.
We are long term investors seeking to take a reliable, repeatable, evidence-based approach.
This page is distributed for educational purposes and should not be considered investment advice or a recommendation of any particular security, strategy, or investment product. Investing places your capital at risk, and investments may fall or rise in value. Cashflow and Tax Planning are not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. You should seek competent advice before taking action.
Latest articles
Paradigm Thinking
Here we share our news and insights into the Paradigm
Norton way of approaching financial planning.
