Air has launched an exclusive education programme with Simplybiz Mortgages to deliver extensive later life training and development to its members.
The agreement will see Air provide the mortgage club’s directly authorised (DA) advisers with its full suite of later life lending training, marking the first time it has delivered the programme as a single, joined-up offering with an external partner.
The partnership launches as the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is examining whether barriers in the advice process are limiting consumer access to later life lending solutions such as lifetime mortgages and retirement interest-only (RIO) products.
Against this backdrop, the initiative is designed to equip advisers with the skills, confidence and practical tools needed to broaden customer conversations and ensure all suitable later life lending options are fully considered.
The programme is built around three key pillars:
- Qualification support: Advisers will gain access to Air’s Academy, featuring the Adviser Accreditation for Later Life Lending, an LIBF-accredited programme worth 24 hours of structured CPD. The programme is designed to helps advisers strengthen their understanding of the later life lending market, including products, customer needs, vulnerability, affordability, the advice process, and the broader financial planning considerations that often sit around later life lending conversations.
- Air Academy One Day Accelerator Programme: A practical, LIBF-accredited training programme that provides 6 hours of CPD and focuses on applying later life lending knowledge in real-world advice scenarios.
- Lead generation workshop: A dedicated webinar designed to help advisers identify opportunities, build referral relationships and achieve commercial success in later life lending.
- Air & Simplybiz will also provide ongoing support to firms and advisers as they embed later life lending into their day-to-day advice processes.
Unlike traditional training models, the programme combines technical knowledge with practical application and commercial development, offering advisers a clear pathway to become confident and competent at providing later life advice.
Will Hale, Chief Executive Officer at Air, said:
“This is a landmark, first-of-its-kind partnership for Air, bringing together our full suite of training, accreditation and business support into a single, joined-up programme.
“We’re delighted that partner is Simplybiz Mortgages, which recognises both the scale of the opportunity in later life lending and the importance of acting now, particularly as the FCA examines whether the market is doing enough to support customers and remove barriers to access.
“Too often, later life lending options are overlooked in favour of more mainstream – but arguably less suitable – solutions. This partnership is about changing that, giving advisers the structure, skills and confidence to raise these conversations earlier and more effectively.”
Martin Reynolds, Chief Executive Officer at Simplybiz Mortgages, added:
“Later life lending is becoming an increasingly important part of the advice landscape, yet it remains underutilised, often because advisers lack the confidence, structure or support to fully engage across all the products sectors within it.
“With the FCA market study placing a clear spotlight on the sector, now is the time for firms to ensure they are equipped to deliver the full range of later life lending options to their customers.
“This partnership with Air reflects our commitment to getting ahead of that shift. By giving our members access to a structured, end-to-end programme, we’re enabling them to deliver better outcomes for customers whilst creating new commercial opportunities.
“Ultimately, this is about helping advisers turn a perceived complex and often overlooked area of the market into a core part of their proposition.”
