Date it before you debate it

This is a method workshop using the FCA's 24 February 2025 ongoing advice review as a dated example. It is not presented as today's latest rule change. Before applying any publication, establish its publisher, original date, later updates, status and scope. A consultation proposes something; a thematic finding describes observed practice; a final rule needs its actual wording, scope and effective date checked.

In the example review, the FCA examined information from a group of large advice firms about delivery of ongoing services. Its findings included cases of delivered reviews, client non-engagement or decline, and cases where firms had not attempted delivery. The population was not representative. Treating headline results as your own firm's performance would be an unsupported inference.

Create a source note before an action note: what you read, what it is, who it concerns and what you still need to verify. Look for subsequent publications and the current Handbook position. This small discipline prevents an old slide, a search snippet or a proposed change from becoming an apparently settled instruction.