A new professional accreditation for advisers and Paraplanners has been created by a ratings and research firm.

FE is launching FE Analytics Certification, saying it is meeting a rising demand from customers for a formalised accreditation on a tool they use frequently.

The firm said it would give advisers and Paraplanners a way to enhance their personal development as well as demonstrate their capabilities for risk measurement, portfolio comparisons and due diligence.

The accreditation is designed to provide advisory firms with “an independent benchmark when looking to hire top talent”.

The company said in a statement: “The launch of the FE Analytics Certification will allow individual advisers and Paraplanners to gain the most out of FE Analytics through modular or bespoke training from the highly qualified FE Academy trainers, followed by an examination.

“The training programme has been developed so that advisers and Paraplanners can make the most of FE Analytics – and those undertaking training can also claim structured CPD credits.”

Gary Wheeler, director at FE, said: “Our client base, which compromises over a third of UK advisers, has provided clear feedback that they want professional training; we are happy to respond to this request.

“With a new, skilled team of training professionals, we are today launching the FE Academy, which provides training on FE’s products for advisers and Paraplanners both online and face-to-face.

“This training includes a number of modules and includes the new FE Analytics Certification, allowing those working in financial advisory businesses to further professionalise their use of our research and investment tools.

“Firms tell us that having staff who can use FE Analytics to a high level of competency is often a key deciding factor in recruiting new staff, and we felt it important to recognise this by introducing the FE Analytics Certification. Users can sit a series of training modules, resulting in an online examination to gain the accreditation.

“We have also taken this opportunity to bring added structure to our training options, which now allow for a variety of off-the-shelf modules or custom training tailored to the needs of advisers and Paraplanners. The modules cater for different roles and tasks, as well as options for people working in financial advisory businesses or asset management and institutions.”

Neil Holmes, Paraplanner at Lovewell Blake Financial Planning, said: “Our staff will be taking the examination as soon as possible, and it really supports our firm’s commitment to technical innovation and personal development as independent financial advisers.”

The certification will be hosted within FE Academy.