February 10, 2026
Most of us hope that our retirement years will be defined by freedom, fulfilment and security. Yet for many people approaching it, confidence is in short supply. The 2025 Nucleus Retirement Confidence Report highlights an overall drop in confidence.
In this article, Talis IFA looks at the key factors increasing people’s concerns about their ability to afford a comfortable retirement, and how advice from an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA) can help you feel more confident.
The 2025 Nucleus Retirement Confidence report: the key takeouts
Since 2024, the nation’s overall confidence score has fallen from 4.6 to 4.2, with women reporting lower levels of confidence (3.8) than men (4.6). Only 26% of people surveyed (4,359 adults, with an even split between men and women) are confident they’ll have enough money to live out their lives comfortably.
This is despite 39% of UK adults believing they’ll need a retirement income of between £20,000 and £40,000, while the Pensions UK comfortable living standards figure predicts that an individual will need £43,900 a year.
43% of UK adults overall don’t contribute to a pension, rising to 45% for women. A key factor here is increased cost of living. 41% say it prevents them from saving for retirement, despite 42% agreeing that people should start planning for retirement in their 20s.
What most people (68%) do agree on though, is that being more educated about financial planning, pensions and investing helps to build confidence in their financial future.
One of the things we frequently hear as IFAs is that people feel underprepared for retirement. We’re often able to show them that, in fact, their financial position is stronger than they think. This confidence gap often stems from:
Confidence doesn’t always correlate with wealth. Some people with substantial assets still feel anxious, while others with more modest savings feel secure because they understand their plan.
The Nucleus report reveals that financial confidence is highest among UK adults who take or have taken paid-for financial advice (5.5). This compares to 4.9 for those who manage their own finances and 4.4 for those who use free guidance services.
Confidence comes from clarity — not guesswork.
One of the most powerful tools we use to build retirement confidence is cashflow modelling. It looks at all your assets: your pensions, savings, investments, and property, along with your spending needs and life goals, and projects how your finances might evolve over time based on different scenarios, showing you:
Our clients who have seen a cashflow model tend to feel significantly more confident about their retirement plans, as they have a clear, visual understanding of their financial future.
One of the biggest shifts in recent years is the move away from the idea of a fixed retirement date and fixed income from a final salary pension. Many people now:
People increasingly want flexibility and their financial confidence grows when they understand how different choices affect their long‑term position.
Markets can move sharply and unexpectedly. But volatility doesn’t automatically mean vulnerability.
With the right investment strategy — diversified, risk‑appropriate and long-term — many retirement plans can withstand market shocks. At Talis IFA, we often refer to this as our ‘get rich slow’ philosophy, and our long-term focus helps to give our clients the confidence to resist the urge for knee-jerk reactions to market or political uncertainty.
Although the Pensions UK comfortable living standards figure predicts that an individual will need £43,900 a year for a comfortable retirement, the reality is that there is no universal retirement number. Your ‘enough’ depends on:
This is why at Talis IFA we take a ‘life first, money second’ approach. We start with your goals, then build the financial plan to support them.
Why advice from an IFA is one of the strongest ways to build your retirement confidence
Working with an IFA who takes the time to get to know you, your life goals, what’s important to you, and your attitude towards risk, offers you all the benefits of:
At Talis IFA, we help our clients build their confidence in making the financial decisions that set them on the road to a secure financial future – and that confidence begins with knowing they’re not doing this alone.
Are you ready to build your retirement confidence?
Retirement confidence isn’t about certainty — it’s about clarity. It’s about understanding your options, knowing how to make your money work harder for you, and having a plan that changes as you do.
Whether you’re years from retirement or already taking income, a Talis IFA can help you:
At Talis IFA, we can’t predict the future but we can provide an honest review of your current financial position and plain English guidance to help you make more confident decisions and feel more secure in your financial future.
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