ADVISER FEATURE comfortable , ask . I think in some respects this comes a little easier for some of us . I am hopeless at small talk and it mostly terrifies me , but awkward questions come a little easier . Counter-intuitive for many , I ’ m sure – a strange blessing for me occasionally . I ’ ve had some awkward conversations around BMI , drug use and illnesses . To me , these are no different to gender and neurodiversity conversations .
Do you have any examples of where you have put this into action yourself ?
I have worked with three transitioning clients and ( I hope ) worked sensitively through their cases – navigating as much as possible for them and explaining where things have been antiquated . These clients tend to refer me on to their communities . I have worked with plenty of deaf clients , again , being sensitive to deafness and making sure to ask what is best for my client .
And what about product providers ? How could protection policies and processes be more open to more people ?
Do you think protection advisers have a pivotal role to play in democratising advice in this way ?
I think in the position that we are already in , we ’ re already having tricky conversations . We ’ re almost always at the beginning of the advice journey and if we can make that experience positive then it ’ s a win for advice and it ’ s making a big difference to those that could potentially slip under the radar and remain underserved . We have such a great chance to support people and look after them . Sometimes it might be tricky and circumstances might be outside of our comfort zone , but aren ’ t the biggest wins in that space ?
Amanda Ormond , our featured adviser , and her family .
I think that providers are slowly getting better – I noticed a question recently when setting up a policy that was worded ‘ biological gender ’ followed by ‘ identified gender ’ – this felt like a big step in the correct direction . I think that there will be a lot more evolution required around neurodiversity and how this is viewed in the protection arena , but I ’ m not sure how we get all of that right . It feels like a bit of a snake pit in some respects !
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| PROTECTION ADVISER | AUTUMN 2023 | 11