The Insurance Institute of Newcastle Upon Tyne
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President's Message

My name is Omar Din, and I am privileged to take on the role of President for our Institute of Newcastle upon Tyne. I am starting a new two-year tenure.

In contrast to many of our previous Presidents, I do not actually work in the General Insurance industry. I am a Financial Planner and have worked in Financial Services since 2007. As well as being a member of the local institute council, I serve as Chair for the Tyne Tees PFS Region which is very similar to council, but with a more focused mandate of supporting PFS members within our region.

I began my life in Financial Services in 2007, working for Denton Woodhouse which was part of the Openwork network. It was here that I effectively learned my trade working in both Paraplanner and Protection Adviser roles whilst also gaining my professional qualifications. I worked my way to Financial Consultant, advising clients on all aspects of Financial Planning.

After 8 years at Denton Woodhouse, I decided to make a move. I joined what was then called Tait Walker – a highly respected accountancy firm that can trace its roots back to 1937, and a firm offering integrated tax and wealth planning advice. This move presented new and exciting opportunities. I joined the wealth management team, initially in a Paraplanner role, and then moved into a Financial Planner role. Tait Walker was acquired in 2022 by national Accountants, Azets, and my department became Azets Wealth Management. Azets are keen to build out the Wealth Management service developed under Tait Walker and offer this across the UK. My role is now progressing into managing our fantastic team of 35 within our Newcastle office - exciting/scary times!!

I have been involved with the Young Professionals Group and Tyne Tees PFS Region since 2018 progressing to main council. Being involved in council has helped me establish a network so I can better help others working in Financial Services.

It's fantastic that we already have a very strong CPD offering in General Insurance and Financial Services. We support our members with Professional Qualifications as well as various social networking events, which you may have come to in the past.

We have just held our Annual Charity Quiz Night and we have our prestigious Annual Dinner due to take place at St James Park on Friday 18th October 2024, which is the pinnacle event in our calendar.

The majority of the social events such as the quiz are run by our Young Professionals Group. They are a fantastic group of individuals who give up their free time to help organise these events and raise money for our charity. They are the future of our council.

Notwithstanding all of the amazing work undertaken by these groups, it is sometimes forgotten that we are all volunteers. We are here to give something back. To serve and to assist our members through the support of the CII and PFS. Obviously, our employers and the businesses that we represent encourage us and provide the time and resources that enables us to do this. On that note, I would like to thank my boss, Mark Parkinson, and the fantastic team at Azets Wealth Management for their continued support.

My theme for this year is ‘Progression’. I love the saying ‘Progression, not Perfection’. As we know, perfection doesn’t exist. We are all on our own journey in both our personal and professional lives. Sometimes we may feel like we are standing still but being able to adapt to the ongoing changes we find ourselves in, altering our work environments, updates in technology… this is all progression!

Each year the President is asked to choose a local charity that will benefit from the fundraising activity that goes on throughout the year. My chosen charity for this year is ‘Daft as a Brush’. This is a fantastic charity that supports a lot of people of the Northeast who are suffering from cancer. I’m delighted to partner with them this year.

Finally, I would like to say that I’m delighted and proud to take on the position of President for The Insurance Institute of Newcastle upon Tyne, which has stood since 1896. I look forward to meeting as many people within our region as possible and if you need anything, then please feel free to contact me.

Thank you

Omar Din Dip PFS Cert CII