Money and Pensions Service Standards

Our standards set out the quality, consumer experience and performance requirements for services we deliver directly or commission through delivery partners.

The Financial Guidance and Claims Act 2018 requires MaPS to set Standards in relation to providing information, advice or guidance.

The aim of the Standards is to ensure that the services being delivered:

• help those most in need
• help those needing to access the services provided by MaPS or delivery partners and
• improve consumers’ financial knowledge, enabling them to make informed decisions.

While the new version of MaPS Standards is now available, we will be working in phases to move services across to the new Standards. Our aim is to have all services live on these Standards from 1 April 2026.

Until then, the previous version of the Standards (PDF, 345KB)Opens in a new window still applies.

The new standards are split into three key areas:

• Designing services and creating capability
• Delivering services to consumers 
• Managing the service

Within these three key areas, the Standards cover the following:

• Designing and developing services – ensuring that the needs of consumers and the people delivering the service are established.
• Engaging with consumers – ensuring that our services reach people where they are.
• Training and competency – ensuring MaPS its delivery partners have adequate training, continued professional development and technical competency to deliver the service.
• Delivering information, advice or guidance to consumers – ensuring our services help and enable consumers to make informed decisions.
• Communicating with consumers – ensuring our information, advice and guidance is well received and understood by consumers.
• Supporting those most in need – ensuring our services are available to those most in need of it, and keeping the needs of consumers in vulnerable circumstances in mind.
• Managing service performance – using performance management to ensure any issues or problems with meeting Standards are being identified and addressed.
• Monitoring and assuring the service – monitoring compliance with the standards and providing information about the status of our compliance.
• Managing complaints – ensuring we have a good complaints management process to aid in improving service delivery and provide confidence to service users.
• Handling consumer data – ensuring we meet relevant legislation around managing records and personal data.

Each of these areas are expanded upon in detail in the full Standards document (PDF, 4.7MB)Opens in a new window.

We have developed supporting toolkits and guidance that sit alongside the Standards. You can download the current version of the MaPS Standards Toolkit (PDF, 862KB)Opens in a new window.

The toolkit sets out the minimum threshold for compliance for each Standard and how they might be applied to different customer journeys.

The latest version reflects your feedback on previous versions of the toolkit. We've tried to be more explicit about minimum thresholds in this version, as you told us you would like more clarity.

You can also download versions of the toolkit with information specific to:

• debt advice services (PDF, 722KB)Opens in a new window
• guidance services (PDF, 651KB)Opens in a new window

Thank you to everyone who shared their views. Our team will review feedback and publish responses for you and others to view hereOpens in a new window

You can still email the team directly at [email protected] for any other queries, and we’ll aim to get back to you within 10 working days.

View our public information for a catalogue of documents we publish to ensure transparency and meet legislative requirements.

You can also: 

• view slides from our Standards update (PDF, 3.2MB)Opens in a new window, which includes consultation feedback
• view the previous version of the Standards, published in 2021 (PDF, 345KB)Opens in a new window