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About | Total Wealth Planner™
A Trusted Second Brain When Life Becomes Complex
When life shifts, the real question isn’t always “What should I do with my money?”
It’s often “Who can I trust to think clearly with me now?”
I’m not here to sell financial products.
I’m not here to manage your money.
I sit on your side of the table — calm, conflict-free, and focused on helping you make decisions that hold up over time.
That’s what Total Wealth Planning™ is for.
My Role
I work as a Total Wealth Planner™ — a trusted second brain who helps people restore clarity, structure, and agency during complexity, stress, or change.
That means:
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No commissions
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No product incentives
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No asset-based fees
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No dependency by design
My work is grounded in one simple principle:
Plan your life first. Then align your money.
The common thread across all my work is restoring human agency — helping people think clearly, choose freely, and act with confidence.
Helping people:
• design lives that fit who they are
• build sustainable livelihoods
• navigate complex institutions without losing themselves
Why I Chose This Path
I spent decades in senior leadership roles within UK financial services, including serving as Head of Investments within HSBC Bank plc’s UK Retail Investment Business (2008–2011), alongside roles at RBS Group and Santander.
I saw how the system worked from the inside — and how often it failed to serve the people it claimed to help.
Clients were often sold complexity.
Professionals were often incentivised to sell.
Trust was quietly eroded.
I chose a different path.
In 2012, I founded the Academy of Life Planning to offer a values-led alternative: planning that puts people before products, clarity before complexity, and agency before dependency.
Total Wealth Planner™ is where that philosophy is applied person-to-person — the human layer when real life decisions are on the line.
What I Stand For
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Product-free, conflict-free planning support
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Human-capital and life-first thinking
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Clear structures people can understand, own, and adapt
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Professional judgement without steering
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Ethics without ideology
I don’t promise certainty.
I help people build clarity, capability, resilience, and direction.
Why Chartered Status Still Matters
I hold Chartered Financial Planner and Chartered Insurer status — the highest professional recognition in UK financial services.
Chartered status isn’t a marketing badge.
It reflects:
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Advanced technical knowledge
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Years of professional experience
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A binding ethical code
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Accountability to recognised professional standards
Only a minority of UK practitioners hold Chartered status. To me, it signals seriousness, not salesmanship.
While my work today is educational, product-free, and non-advisory, that professional grounding matters — because complex decisions deserve disciplined thinking.
I am Stephen James Conley, a registered financial services professional and current member of the Personal Finance Society and Chartered Insurance Institute, subject to their professional Code of Ethics.
I was awarded the title of Chartered Insurer by the Chartered Insurance Institute on 1 December 1989, and the title of Chartered Financial Planner on 15 December 2017.
These are professional designations awarded through the CII’s Royal Charter framework. My current professional standing can be verified instantly through my PFS/CII digital register entry using the QR code alongside this section.
This is separate from FCA authorisation.
The CII and PFS are professional bodies concerned with professional qualifications, Chartered status, ethics and continuing professional standing. The FCA is a statutory regulator concerned with permission to carry on specified regulated activities.
I therefore remain professionally qualified, professionally registered and subject to a professional code of ethics, while deliberately operating a financial planning model that does not involve FCA-regulated investment intermediation.
On the regulatory position, financial planning itself is not an FCA-regulated activity. FCA Perimeter Guidance recognises financial planning as an example of generic advice that is not caught by the regulated activity of advising on investments, provided the activity does not amount to a personal recommendation concerning a particular regulated investment.
Put simply: I help you understand what you want your money to do and make better financial decisions. I do not tell you which particular regulated investment to buy.
What Working With Me Is Like
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I don’t tell you what to do.
I don’t take over decisions.
I don’t make myself indispensable. -
I work with you, not over you — and not instead of you.
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Together, we:
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Clarify what has changed
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Identify what truly matters now
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Design a life-first plan
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Build financial architecture to support it
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Equip you to act with greater independence
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Once clarity is restored, you’re free to go. That is intentional.
Who I Typically Work With
I work with capable, thoughtful people facing complexity, stress, or transition — including those navigating:
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Bereavement, separation, or inheritance
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Burnout, redundancy, or career change
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Retirement redesign
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Business transition or succession
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Family or intergenerational decisions
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Recovery after financial harm
If that sounds like where you are, you’re not alone — and you don’t have to process it unsupported.
My Background (Briefly)
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Chartered Financial Planner & Chartered Insurer
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Fellow, Chartered Insurance Institute & Personal Finance Society
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Registered Life Planner (Kinder Institute)
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BSc Mathematics, University of Manchester
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Founder, Academy of Life Planning
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Transparency Trophy Winner
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Global Ambassador, Transparency Task Force
I’ve spent my career bridging technical rigour with human reality — especially when decisions feel complex.
What Clients Say
Very clearly explained support when I most needed it
“I was recently widowed when I came to Steve to help me sort out my finances. Steve charged a much more reasonable fee to help me get my finances in order and was incredibly good at patiently explaining things to me. My bereavements meant I suffered from brain fog, so I found it hard to grasp things. Our regular meetings helped me take action and empowered me to make decisions about my financial planning. Steve is incredibly kind, supportive and knowledgeable and I really appreciated his help during one of the most stressful periods of my life.”
Lisa Jackson, Lancing, England, March 2025.
Client words are their own. Total Wealth Planner™ provides educational financial planning support, not regulated financial advice or personal product recommendations.
Danny Shiel, Harrogate, North Yorkshire, Aug 2026.
An Invitation
If you’re looking for someone to:
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sell you products — I’m not the right person
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manage your money — I don’t do that
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tell you what to do — that is not my role
But if you want:
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a clear, grounded conversation
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professional structure without pressure
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a trusted second brain who puts your life first
You’re welcome to book a short introductory call.
15 minutes. No pressure. Just clarity.
My Qualifications
1986-1989
FCII, DipPFS
Chartered Insurance Institute
Member of the Personal Finance Society and the Chartered Insurance Institute. Fellowship via Pensions Route.
Chartered Insurer. Twice winner (Associateship & Fellowship) of the British Insurance & Investment Brokers' Association prize and twice winner of the Jubilee Prize of the Insurance Institute of Manchester, for best performance in North West UK and Manchester respectively.
2008-2017
APFS, Advanced Diploma
Personal Finance Society
Chartered Financial Planner:
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J02 Trusts and Estate Planning
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J04 Pension Funding Options
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J05 Pension Income
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AF3 Pension Planning
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AF5 Financial Planning Process
1979-1983
BSc Mathematics
University of Manchester
Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from UMIST, University of Manchester.