For my last column of 2023, rather than give you my eagerly-awaited insights into the latest developments in the Financial Planning profession and financial services, I thought it would be useful to look at other worthwhile things that Financial Planners do when they are not providing financial advice.

It is, after all, the season of giving and there’s no better example of this than the incredible fund raising effort and support for Ukraine and Moldova provided by three very experienced Financial Planners; Phil Billingham, David Crozier and Shannon Currie.

Not only did they raise huge sums for Ukraine via their Rock for Ukraine gig when the conflict broke out nearly two years ago - widely supported by the financial sector - they have continued to support Ukrainian refugees and the people of Moldova, who have given so much to support Ukrainian refugees despite being far from a wealthy country.

The three amigos, if I can call them that, have not simply sent a one-off donation to help Ukraine, they have continued to support the country since the war broke out in February 2022 when Russia invaded Ukraine.

Rather than just putting their hands in their pockets they have also made numerous trips to the region, bringing with them much-needed medical and other supplies.

You can read about their efforts in this special report: Ukraine and Moldova - the story continues.

They are not alone. Every month we feature on Financial Planning Today the efforts of so many Financial Planning firms and Financial Planners to raise money for their local communities, to support education or just help the wider community. I doubt there are many Financial Planning firms who have not done something significant this year to help others.

What is most praiseworthy is that many of these efforts are not just one-offs, they are long term campaigns to build a better world.

The Financial Planning profession, and the wider financial services sector, is incredibly generous when it comes to donating time and money to helping others and that's often forgotten or little trumpeted.

So this year I will be raising a small brandy as a toast to all the Financial Planning heroes who understand that planning for a better world is as important as planning a client’s personal finances.

• Finally, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all our readers and thanks to many of you for your comments on this column. I have to say that some of the suggestions I occasionally receive are physically impossible but I enjoy all the feedback, positive and negative! I hope you have a very relaxing and enjoyable time over the festive period whatever you are doing. This column will take a short break over Christmas and the New Year, returning on 19 Jan.

Our news service will also be taking a short break over Christmas but will return on the 27 December and you can, of course, catch up with our website news whenever you like. As a Christmas gift here’s a link to our popular Financial Planning Today digital edition: https://bit.ly/2ZdVXWz. If you like the magazine you can subscribe to receive every issue and enjoy our premium print edition as a valuable optional add-on.

Instead of Christmas cards this year we are making a donation to the Trussell Trust charity which supports food banks all over the UK.

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Kevin O’Donnell is editor of Financial Planning Today and a journalist with 40 years of experience in finance, business and mainstream news. This topical comment on the Financial Planning news appears most weeks, usually on Fridays but occasionally other days.  Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Follow @FPT_Kevin