Introducing…Deep Dive Financial Planning
Blog
Publication date:
28 July 2026
Last updated:
29 July 2026
In our next instalment of Introducing our new corporate Chartered firms, we catch up with Peter Ditchburn, Managing Partner at Deep Dive Financial Planning who became Chartered Financial Planners in May 2026.
Find out more about what they do, what inspired them to become Chartered and how they found the process.
Could you tell us a little about your firm and the services you provide?
We specialise in the needs of people in retirement, who are looking to make good use of their family wealth. It is important to our clients that we understand the whole family, joining the dots between the generations rather than looking at things in silos.
As well as regulated financial advice, we offer expertise on bespoke trusts, wills, and legal deeds through our partnership with Deep Dive Estate Planning - this provides a streamlined experience for people's generational wealth planning.
Of course the biggest conversations for a firm like ours involve the upcoming changes to Inheritance Tax and pensions, and how these two areas interact.
What inspired your firm to apply for Corporate Chartered status?
I have been Chartered personally since 2014 and believe that it is important not to stand still. Since then, I have attained SOLLA and some STEP exams too, while I was waiting the three requisite years for Deep Dive to qualify for Corporate Chartered.
It just seemed like an easy decision really, if you have made the effort to attain Chartered personally, why wouldn't you want your firm to be? We only want Chartered advisers to give advice at Deep Dive, and I believe that Corporate Chartered status will help us attract the best of the best.
How did you find the application process?
The CII part was easy, and the staff were very helpful in helping me understand what was needed. Having to instruct a second company director was the biggest challenge in terms of paperwork, but nothing difficult, just a little bit of a time spend.
What does being a Chartered firm represent for your business?
We have always wanted to be the best choice of IFA for people who care about family wealth through the generations, and Corporate Chartered status represents another acknowledgement of that commitment and ambition.
Trusting a firm with something as critical as "all your money, for the rest of your life" is a massive decision, so the fact that we are making the necessary commitments to education and ethics hopefully makes that easier for clients.
How did you mark this milestone?
We threw a massive party with all our clients and professional connections - at the House of Commons - to launch our new status!
It was lovely to be able to invite all the clients who have joined me over my career, and Deep Dive since we launched, and it was a really proud moment for the team to celebrate. It felt like the culmination of 15 years of trying to do the best for my clients and we are looking forward to the next milestone!
How will you communicate your Chartered status to your clients?
Our existing clients already know. We are contemplating a rebrand as "Deep Dive Chartered Financial Planners" but there are a few more hoops to jump through before we get to that.
What advice would you give to other firms considering applying?
Just work through the application document. If there's additional work or tasks before you can apply, they make it easy and obvious and are good at picking up the phone. You have got nothing to lose by starting!
Is there anything else you would like to share about your Chartered journey?
I was fortunate that I came straight out of university and picked up a CII/PFS textbook, so I never lost momentum in studying and getting at least one new exam a year did not feel like a tall order.
If you have been out of exams for a while it might be tempting to make an excuse to put off the exams, but there are a lot of employers around who will support you financially and/or with study leave.
You can learn more about Deep Dive Financial Planning here.
If you would like to learn more about Corporate Chartered status, visit our dedicated page.