Keith Barron of Harley Financial and Daniel Morgan, a trainee financial planner at Berry & Oak Ltd, have become the first to achieve the UK’s highest qualification for financial planners, the Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment's Level 7 Diploma in Advanced Financial Planning.

Harley works in Falkirk in Scotland; Morgan works in Boston Spa in Yorkshire, the home of the British Library. Both have become the first to pass the CISI’s new Level 7 Financial Plan Case Study, if one can imagine a case study being 'passed.' This is the final step towards the achievement of the Level 7 Diploma.

The CISI, somewhat mysteriously, states that Morgan has to fulfil some "ethics and experience requirements" before he can apply for the "gold-standard, global certification for financial planners, the CFP certification." This is hardly a rare accolade, however; once approved, he can expect to join more than 186,000 people with that certification. Barron has already acquired it.

In a rather unlettered way, Morgan stated on the CISI website: “I think it is important, as a financial planner, to be able to bring together your technical knowledge and apply it to clients’ circumstances in a coherent financial plan, which is what the Level 7 case study tests."

He also looked forward to being part of "the global community of Certified Financial Planners™."

Barron was more level-headed: "In a real-life setting there would be in-depth discussions with the client to ascertain their aims, objectives and priorities."