Our commitment to human agency, stewardship and responsible professional practice
Our purpose
The Academy of Life Planning exists to restore human agency by helping people develop the knowledge, capabilities and confidence to understand their circumstances, make informed choices and act independently.
We believe that human talents, knowledge and capabilities carry responsibilities as well as opportunities. They can be used to enrich our own lives, support others, strengthen communities and contribute to the wellbeing of our planet.
We regard the responsible use of these gifts as an expression of stewardship.
The Academy is faith-neutral and faith-friendly. We welcome people of different religious, spiritual and philosophical traditions, united by a common commitment to human dignity, personal responsibility and service to others.
Our ethical principles govern how we work with individuals, practitioners, organisations and commercial partners.
They establish the standards of conduct expected of those who seek Academy accreditation, professional endorsement or participation in our practitioner community.
Our five ethical principles
1. Stewardship — Use our capabilities responsibly
We recognise that our knowledge, talents, experience, relationships and resources have value beyond our personal financial interests.
We undertake to use these capabilities responsibly, recognising our obligations to other people, future generations and the natural environment.
We encourage the development of human potential and the application of that potential towards worthwhile purposes, including caring, creativity, education, enterprise, community participation and service.
Professional success should be measured not only by the rewards we receive but also by the value we create and the consequences of our actions.
2. Non-exploitation — Never profit by taking advantage of vulnerability
We recognise that differences in knowledge, power, confidence and financial resources can create opportunities for exploitation.
We will not knowingly take advantage of another person’s vulnerability, dependency, distress or lack of understanding for personal or commercial gain.
We reject practices that create unnecessary dependency, manipulate fears, exploit trust or place commercial incentives ahead of the interests of those being served.
We believe that fair remuneration for genuine professional value is legitimate and necessary for sustainable practice.
However, commercial success must never depend upon undermining another person’s wellbeing, dignity or independence.
3. Transparency — Make interests and incentives understandable
We believe that people cannot exercise meaningful agency without access to clear, relevant and understandable information.
We undertake to communicate honestly about:
- The nature and scope of our services.
- The benefits and limitations of our expertise.
- Fees, charges and commercial arrangements.
- Conflicts of interest and financial incentives.
- Material uncertainties, assumptions and risks.
- What we know, what we do not know and what remains to be established.
We will not deliberately obscure information, exaggerate benefits, conceal relevant interests or create misleading impressions.
We believe that transparency is essential to trust, informed consent and independent decision-making.
4. Empowerment — Build capability rather than dependency
We believe that the purpose of professional assistance is to strengthen human agency.
Our role is to help people understand their circumstances, explore their options, recognise opportunities and obstacles, and make decisions consistent with their own values and aspirations.
We support human development towards greater self-awareness, autonomy, responsibility, wellbeing and contribution.
We recognise that people develop at different rates, face different circumstances and express their capabilities in different ways.
We do not require individuals to adopt a particular religious belief, spiritual tradition or philosophy of life.
We encourage self-directed decision-making, supported by professional expertise when it adds value.
We seek to leave people more capable of understanding, choosing and acting than when they first approached us.
Self-directed by default. Supported when it matters.
5. Accountability — Accept responsibility for our conduct and its consequences
We recognise that professional freedom carries responsibility.
We undertake to act with integrity, exercise reasonable care, recognise the limits of our competence and consider the foreseeable consequences of our actions.
When mistakes occur, we will acknowledge them, seek to understand their causes and take reasonable steps to remedy harm and prevent recurrence.
We welcome constructive challenge, scrutiny and evidence that calls our assumptions into question.
We will not use professional status, institutional authority or commercial influence to evade responsibility.
Accountability is not merely compliance with rules. It is a continuing commitment to act responsibly towards those affected by our decisions.
Our responsibilities towards others
The Academy recognises that professional relationships can affect people beyond those directly receiving our services.
When supporting a practitioner, we must consider the interests of that practitioner’s present and future clients.
When collaborating with an organisation, we must consider the people affected by its products, services and commercial practices.
When developing technology, we must consider whether it increases human understanding and control or creates new forms of dependency and exploitation.
We will not knowingly strengthen one person’s agency by helping them undermine another person’s agency.
Our commitment to empowerment therefore includes a responsibility to protect people against exploitation.
Ethical standards for accreditation and partnership
Academy accreditation, endorsement and professional partnership represent more than technical competence or commercial association.
They signify a commitment to the principles set out in this statement.
We welcome practitioners from different professional backgrounds, including those transitioning from established financial services business models.
We do not require agreement with every aspect of the Academy’s philosophy or methodology.
We do, however, require a genuine willingness to uphold our ethical standards in professional conduct.
Where concerns arise, we will seek to understand the facts, provide an opportunity for explanation and distinguish genuine misconduct from differences of opinion or professional judgment.
The Academy reserves the right to decline, suspend or withdraw accreditation, endorsement or partnership where credible evidence demonstrates conduct materially inconsistent with these principles, subject to fair and proportionate procedures.
We will not knowingly provide professional assistance intended to facilitate deception, manipulation or exploitation.
Our commitment to service
We believe that human flourishing extends beyond material accumulation.
Financial wellbeing matters because it supports the wider purposes of life.
Human wealth also includes our health, relationships, knowledge, abilities, character, creativity, sense of belonging and capacity to contribute.
We recognise that service can take many forms: raising a family, caring for others, creating something beautiful, building a responsible enterprise, sharing knowledge, protecting the environment or helping someone through adversity.
Contribution need not be publicly recognised, financially rewarded or professionally organised to possess profound value.
The Academy encourages people to discover and develop their capabilities, and to consider how those capabilities might enrich both their own lives and the lives of others.
Our ethical boundary
The Academy is committed to making knowledge, education and opportunities for personal development widely accessible.
However, access to our professional guidance, accreditation, endorsement and partnerships is conditional upon conduct consistent with our ethical principles.
We respect the freedom of others to make their own choices.
We equally exercise our freedom to determine where we lend our expertise, time, resources and professional reputation.
We welcome those genuinely seeking to move from dependency and exploitation towards autonomy, stewardship and service.
We will not knowingly assist those who intend to reproduce exploitative practices under the appearance of independence or empowerment.
Our guiding commitment
We will help people become more capable. We will not knowingly help them become more capable of exploiting others.
We believe that freedom and responsibility belong together.
That genuine prosperity includes the wellbeing of others.
And that our talents find their highest expression when used with integrity, care and consideration for the world we share.
Our purpose is to restore human agency. Our responsibility is to exercise our own agency ethically in pursuit of that purpose.
Academy of Life Planning
Plan the person before the money.
Bring me the problem, not the portfolio.
