Welcome to the autumn edition of the Bluesky Bulletin.
In this edition, we say goodbye to Isaac and Alex, welcome back Natasha and reflect on what the team has been up to since our last edition.
2026 so far – “Phew, what a scorcher”
Some of you who are as old as the editor will remember the tabloid headlines from 1976. How little we knew then.
By mid-July this year, the UK had logged more days above 30 degrees than the whole of 1976. This was not confined to the UK, with Japan having long streaks of days over 40 degrees and wildfires raging across Europe.
Thankfully the Barn has a very efficient air conditioning system, which has meant we have been able to keep our staff and clients cool through the summer months.
Moving into autumn
We’re now moving into this editor’s favourite time of year, autumn. A time for reflection and celebration of the last warmth of the summer as we move towards winter.
This editor is reminded of the quote by Nathaniel Hawthorne (American novelist; his influences were mainly from his ancestor who was a judge at the Salem witch trials):
“I cannot endure to waste anything so precious as autumnal sunshine by staying in the house.”
Life is short, and you never know what is around the corner. If you’re thinking of doing that “special thing” in retirement, don’t wait, do it now while you can. Even if the question is perhaps bigger (for example, “should I retire early”), talk to your adviser and discuss whether your cashflow models suggest that you can.
Don’t waste autumnal sunshine by continually saying “I’ll retire next year” or “we’ll do that cruise or extended trip to Australia when I retire”. Time is fleeting and this editor knows just how the future can change in an instant.
As Robin Williams so famously extolled in Dead Poets Society, “Carpe Diem, gentlemen, Carpe Diem.”
Bluesky company days
As previous staff bulletins have mentioned, each quarter we hold an offsite day where all the staff get together for training and company updates. We believe these days are integral for ensuring we take time to reflect on what went well over the previous quarter and consider areas where we can improve.
The day is not all work, but most of the activities are designed to promote teamwork. This time round Neil organised an augmented reality tour of Reading where the four teams had to undertake a bank heist by solving clues and puzzles.
Below are some team shots from the day.
Rachel organised an evening of football golf. As the name suggests, players kick a football around a bespoke golf course and try to get the ball into the large hole. Sounds easy, but the course was brown and rock hard due to the lack of rain and the greens were made of extremely smooth astro turf – Augusta it most certainly wasn’t!
Three putting – which is where it takes you three separate strokes on the putting green to hit your ball into the hole – is considered poor technique at the highest levels. On this course, the greens were so quick, you could easily take 10 (or more) shots just to get your ball to stop on the green.
A fun (but frustrating) evening was had by all!
Ms Lahart becomes Mrs Doyle
For those of you who are fans of “Father Ted”, our new Mrs Doyle is NOT the Mrs Doyle so famously portrayed by Pauline McLynn.
Rachel and her partner, Lewis, were married in Greece this summer, and this is one of her favourite photos from the wedding day.
We wish them well for their future together!
A fond farewell to Isaac and Alex
Isaac was our first university placement student and has been with us since last summer. He’s now returning to do his last year at Exeter University.
He has been an invaluable member of the client services team, and we wish him all the best as he continues his studies. Who knows, maybe we’ll see him again at Bluesky in the future?
This photo best sums up our memories of Isaac.
We’re also sad to say that Alex is leaving Bluesky, having been with us since March as part of the client services team.
Alex has decided to follow his passion for extreme cycling and to become a tour guide on cycle tours such as those that cross the Andes in South America.
He completed one such trip last year that took four months and saw him travelling a total of 3,561 miles.
If any of our clients wish to ride a bike continuously and sleep in a tent for four months solid, he’s promised mate’s rates! This is the sort of view you can expect after approximately 70 miles of riding that day…
We wish both Isaac and Alex all the best and thank them for their work and commitment during their time with Bluesky.
Welcome back, Natasha!
Some of you may remember that we said goodbye to Natasha this time last year as she and her new husband, Brad, decided it was the right time to go and see the world.
We always hoped it would be au revoir or until we meet again, and we’re delighted to say that with her travels behind her, Natasha has agreed to rejoin Bluesky.
She is a fantastic paraplanner and an even better colleague, and we’re thrilled to have her back.
This is a photo from their time in New Zealand.
We hope you have enjoyed reading this quarter’s Bluesky Bulletin and look out for our next update in December 2026.