Specialist lender Pepper Money is significantly expanding its wellbeing programme for brokers with the launch of its most ambitious Retreat series to date, beginning this month.
The initiative, part of the lender’s ongoing ‘Be More You’ campaign, is designed to address burnout in the mortgage intermediary community and provide practical support to help brokers manage the demands of the profession. This year’s events are expected to draw more than three times the number of attendees compared with last year, as the series grows to cover multiple dates in London and Manchester.
REFLECT & RESET
Launching during Mental Health Awareness Week, the 2025 Retreat series will continue into the autumn, offering brokers a space to reflect, reset and equip themselves with tools to manage stress and enhance resilience. The move follows what Pepper described as “overwhelming success” in 2024, when the inaugural Retreat events were praised for providing a rare opportunity for participants to prioritise their own wellbeing.
This year’s programme includes keynote sessions, peer-to-peer networking and workshops led by experts in mindfulness, breathwork and mental health. Attendees at the first event, Retreat North, taking place in Manchester on 14 May, will hear from Glow London chief executive Emma Harris, whose talk, entitled #SlowtheF**Down*, will encourage brokers to reassess their pace of work and focus on self-preservation.
Known for delivering hard-hitting talks to high-performing corporate teams, Harris brings what organisers describe as a “zero fluff” approach to stress management and mindset resets. In parallel, Jessie Laute, a leading breathwork coach, will guide attendees through practical techniques designed to reduce anxiety and improve focus.
INSIGHT
A panel discussion between Pepper Money’s sales director Paul Adams and William Lloyd-Hayward, co-founder of the Mortgage Industry Mental Health Charter, will offer further insight into the mental health challenges within the sector, particularly for brokers operating alone or outside standard working hours.
Paul Adams said the decision to build on last year’s pilot was grounded in the lender’s desire to take meaningful action in support of its broker partners. “Prioritising the wellbeing of our business partners is more than just talk – it requires real action,” he said. “That’s why last year, we took the step of hosting our first broker Retreat, turning our commitment to wellbeing into a proactive, hands-on initiative that provided valuable support and placed our brokers at the heart of our plans.”
He added: “We know that many brokers operate as small businesses and must often go above and beyond, working outside of traditional hours to meet the needs of their clients. Recognising the daily challenges brokers face in supporting customers, and the sacrifices they often make to do so, we understand the significant impact this can have on their wellbeing.”
This year’s series, Adams confirmed, will include at least two further Retreat events, each designed to help brokers maintain both personal health and professional standards in a competitive and fast-paced market.
Liam Atkins, chief compliance officer at Simply, attended last year’s Retreat and said the experience had encouraged both personal and organisational reflection. “Pepper Money’s 2024 Retreat provided a welcoming and relaxed environment to connect with peers, step away from the pressures of daily life as a broker, and learn from experts about how to look after our wellbeing,” he said.
“It’s refreshing to have a lender demonstrate that they understand and value us, not only professionally, but also personally. Hopefully this event acts as a trigger for people like me to make positive personal and corporate changes to help brokers have a better work-life balance.”
Pepper Money said it remained committed to further embedding wellbeing into its broker engagement strategy and would continue to assess opportunities to support partners throughout the year.
