Quilter has partnered with workplace mental health specialist Spill to launch online resources and a counselling service its Financial Planners and their staff.

Resources available through the new service from Spill include bitesize content such as how to approach news and social media, how to prevent burnout and how to beat daily anxiety.

Spill also offers one-to-one support in different  formats: a free ’ask a therapist’ service where advisers can browse real advice from therapists and suggest topics for them to cover; or alternatively one-to-one personal therapy sessions – which can be taken as a one off or over a course of 4-10 sessions. These are offered via Quilter’s “There For You” hub at a 30% discount. 

All the services are confidential and can be accessed through Quilter’s “There for You” hub.

Paul Feeney, CEO of Quilter, said: “This pandemic has changed much about the way we work, live, function and support each other. It has underlined the importance of human connections and having someone to turn to in times of need. It is more important than ever for us to take care of our mental health and at Quilter we want to make sure that every financial adviser, no matter the size of their firm, has the resources and support they need. By joining forces with Spill I hope that we will be able to help the advice profession access the emotional and mental health support they need and deserve.”

Richard Fraser, regional Financial Planning director at Quilter Private Client Advisers, said: “The nature of being a financial adviser means you often have to deal with complex client emotions. Unfortunately some of the biggest financial impacts in your life can be negative: illness, death, unemployment just to name a few. And anyone going through that is highly likely to be struggling. 

“It’s important to remember that financial advisers are not counsellors and shouldn’t be expected to have the specialist skill set to deal with complex emotional or mental health problems. That being said, even just being a listening ear to someone’s problems can have an impact on your mental health. It’s vital that advisers have the support they need to ensure their own mental wellbeing, particularly as those tough conversations may start to increase.”