The initiatives will help employers and those already working in the financial services sector to fund training and qualifications as well as providing graduates from ethnic minorities and disadvantaged communities the opportunities to gain employment within the financial services sector in London.
The European Social fund, co-financed by the Learning and Skills council, will fund this initiative in order to enable Careers London to provide financial support to firms and individuals in the sector to help them finance their employees’ or their own career development and support the costs of additional study.
Not-for-profit organisation Graduate Forum is subsequently providing a valuable link in the chain for well-qualified graduates from ethnic minorities and disadvantaged communities considering alternatives to traditional graduate training programmes. They offer a free recruitment service that they hope will bridge the gap between graduates and the financial services sector.
After a recent poll of its members, AIFA found that over 80% were already working in financial services before making the transition to become an IFA. However, with the decline of the direct sales force, the traditional training ground for IFAs has gone, which highlights the need for this tradition to change, and begs the question ‘where will the next generation of IFAs come from?’
With only 3% of AIFA members joining from full-time education, AIFA are keen to promote the recruitment scheme, which offers employers access to a pool of high calibre candidates, many of which have previous experience gained while on placement or in their first jobs. In addition, AIFA has recently updated its website with a new section, giving graduates and employers more information on how they can be of mutual benefit to each other.
Director general Chris Cummings, AIFA said: “AIFA fully supports the services that Careers London and Graduate Forum are offering for graduates and firms in the City. It is vital for the future of the IFA community that firms start to realise the benefits of employing and training graduate IFAs in London. We are encouraging all of our members to contact Careers London/Graduate Forum with their recruitment needs.”
