Hannah: Hi, my name is Hannah Butler, this is my husband, Paul. We are helped by Ardent with our financial matters. Our adviser is Ruth Norman, we’ve known her for about two years.
Paul: Originally, we came into some money through inheritance, my father died and left us some money in his will. We didn’t really know what to do at that point, or we didn’t know what best to do. We had Ardent recommended by a friend, and we approached them. Ruth Norman became involved in helping us with our finances and our financial planning from that point.
Hannah: We came across Ardent from the recommendation of a friend. It was quite a while ago, and it was a person called Michael who then left. So, Ruth was offered as a replacement for Michael, we clicked with her straight away. She just had a communication manner that was brilliant, really seemed to get where we were coming from and what we needed. So, we’ve stuck with her, and it’s been great.
The first time we met Ruth, I was struck by how warm she was, how immediately comfortable we were with her. She’s got a good sense of humour and she was also very adaptable and flexible. She fitted in around our working hours for our first appointment. All of those sorts of graphics and things that she brought in terms of financial planning and forecasting and whatnot, were really easy to understand, and she just seemed to get what we needed. But also, with a sort of a confident hand to guide us in the right direction.
Paul: Ethical investment was something that was very important to us. We’d not had a lump sum of money to invest before. It was very important that that money wasn’t going towards industries that were harming the planet, or in any way harmful to anybody, that were in accordance with human rights and things like that. We wanted to be reassured that our money was being spent on things that we believed in.
Hannah: Ruth right from the start, has felt like a safe pair of hands. She’s incredibly diligent with her research, and she’s so approachable. Obviously, the whole pandemic and all of that has caused financial markets to be a bit scary at points. She’s been on the end of the phone for any words of reassurance, and it’s absolutely been worth any money having Ruth there. She definitely feels like a safe pair of hands.
Paul: For me, there’s so many aspects that are good and give me confidence. The sense of my financial future, being in safe hands, feeling reassured that the goals that we’ve set are attainable, and being clear about how those goals might be met. Being listened to and responded to and understood. I think are all aspects I would identify as being particularly good about our experience working with Ruth.
Hannah: The three words I would use to describe Ruth would be dependable, thorough and approachable.
Paul: I would have no hesitation in recommending Ruth and Ardent to anyone, and indeed I have done.
