Items
| No. |
Item |
1. |
Election of Chair for Meeting
Additional documents:
Minutes:
Mr J Parsons was elected to be the Chair for
this sitting of the Pension Board.
Mr Buckland expressed his thanks to Mr Parsons
and recognised that the Pension Board meeting in November would aim
to appoint an independent Chair.
|
2. |
Apologies and Substitutes
Additional documents:
Minutes:
There were no apologies received.
|
3. |
Declarations of Interest by Board Members on Items on the Agenda for this Meeting
Additional documents:
Minutes:
There were no declarations of interest.
|
4. |
Minutes of the Meeting Held on 21/11/2024  PDF 91 KB
Additional documents:
Minutes:
RESOLVED that the minutes of the
meeting held on 21 November 2024 were
correctly recorded and that they be signed by the Chairman as a
correct record.
|
5. |
Date of Next Meeting
The next meeting of the board is scheduled to
be held on 25 Novemebr 2025, commencing at 10.00 am.
Additional documents:
Minutes:
The Board marked that the next meeting was to
be held on the 25 November 2025, commencing at 10:00 am.
|
6. |
Pension Fund Committee Update
Additional documents:
Minutes:
- Mr Buckland introduced the report
highlighting that the Committee had last met in March with Members
being briefed on various matters in July.
- It was announced that the Committee
would be asked to agree the appointment of Mrs Emberson to chair
the Committee when it next met. Attendees acknowledged Mrs
Emberson’s prior experience, noting her strong background in
pension governance and strategic leadership.
- RESOLVED to note the
report.
|
7. |
Governance Update PDF 78 KB
Additional documents:
Minutes:
- Mr Buckland introduced the
Governance update report.
- During consideration of the item,
the following comments were raised:
- Significant work had already been
undertaken, with further initiatives scheduled to continue over the
next two to three years as part of the business plan.
- A key governance consideration was
to be the training and development of Board and Committee Members;
this was recognised as a matter of particular
importance.
- The technical nature of the training
was discussed, alongside the potential value brought by the large
number of new Members, who may offer fresh perspectives on key
matters.
- The role of the independent expert
that had originally been proposed during the Terms of Reference
review was discussed. The expert would be appointed to chair the
Board, provide support to Members, and constructively challenge
officers in their respective roles. In light of the recent
post-election administrative changes, it was agreed that this was
an opportune moment to implement the strategy. Timelines for
recruitment and details of the job advertisement were also
presented.
- RESOLVED to note the
report.
|
8. |
Pensions Administration PDF 154 KB
Additional documents:
Minutes:
- Mrs Chambers introduced the pensions
administration report
- During consideration
of the item the following comments were raised:
- The current
performance report was reviewed, and discussions were held
regarding the development of a new reporting framework designed to
facilitate regular and more effective performance
reviews.
- The performance
report was currently produced on a monthly basis and had
consistently met key performance indicators (KPIs) and statutory
targets for priority items. It would now be refined to better
support strategic planning, with the revised format set to exclude
any historical cases currently under review, where
possible.
- Adjustments were made
to July’s data, and a review of August’s figures
highlighted a recurring issue related to new joiners, which was
currently being addressed. While performance on priority items
continued to meet KPIs and statutory targets, further attention was
required to improve outcomes beyond these parameters.
- A significant number
of vacancies remained, and discussions had highlighted a strategic
intent to reduce reliance on flexible resourcing. The Admin Senior
Management Team had been tasked with reviewing resource deployment
and identifying more sustainable implementation strategies. An
update on progress would be provided at a later stage.
- The backlog clearing
progress was expected to accelerate, supported by the rollout of
additional competency training aimed at enhancing staff capability
and operational efficiency.
- Interviews were
scheduled to take place for roles within the Engagement and Systems
Team. A number of the applicants had prior experience in pensions,
which may offer valuable insight and expertise. Recruitment for
entry-level Pensions Assistant positions would commence in
October.
- Fortnightly upgrades
would be released by the system provider to enhance functionality
of the member self-service platform, and existing websites remain
under continuous review to ensure they would meet evolving
operational needs.
- The Engagement and
Systems Team has undergone a formal name change, accompanied by a
review and amendment of relevant job titles to ensure alignment
with their updated responsibilities. Additionally, end-of-year
projects have been successfully completed ahead of
schedule.
- Annual Benefit
Statements would now publish on the member self-service portal with
paper copies to be made available if required. The Deferred Member
statements were published on the 30/31 July and the Active Member
Statements were published on 19/20 August. The updated
Communications Policy had been drafted and would be seeking
Committee approval 23September.
- The Technical and
Training lead, Mr Wookey, has moved to the LGA. The two existing
Technical Consultants would be acting up into the role in a job
share capacity.
- Potential regulatory
changes arising from the most recent Access and Fairness
consultation were discussed. As highlighted in the accompanying
paper, the McCloud data submission to KPF was originally set for 22
August. However, it was marked that this date had since been
amended to 15 September due to the complexity and volume of the
data submitted.
- The Chair enquired
whether a structure chart could be included in future reports to
assist in visualising current vacancies and team configurations.
Mrs Chambers acknowledged the request and expanded on the topic,
noting the ongoing challenges in ...
view the full minutes text for item 8.
|
9. |
Member Training Update PDF 113 KB
Additional documents:
Minutes:
- Mrs Green introduced the Member
training update.
- The following highlights were
raised:
a)
Induction briefings have been undertaken throughout July and
August.
b)
The online National Knowledge Assessment survey was live and would
close on 24 September at 5pm. The collated results would then be
used to inform the new structured training programme.
c)
Hot Topic training briefings would be held on specific subjects
pertinent to decision making.
d)
Online access to the training portal ‘Enlightens’,
hosted by Barnett Waddingham was available to Members. A great
resource with ‘bite-sized’ videos on a range of LGPS
topics such as employer contributions, administration and
investment.
e)
Members were required to complete the Pensions Regulator’s
E-Toolkit (public sector pensions to provide Members with a solid
foundation in pension governance and a structured introduction to
the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS). This resource helped to
support informed decision-making and strengthened Members’
understanding of regulatory responsibilities.
f)
In relation to communications shared through the Fund’s Board
and Committee Members’ File share site, Members were
encouraged to report any issues encountered with access.
g)
Board Members were reminded about ‘Fundamentals
Training’, hosted by the Local Government Association to be
held between October and December 2025. Members were asked to
contact Mrs Green if they were interested in undertaking the
training so that a booking could be made on their behalf.
- RESOLVED to note the
report.
|
10. |
Investment Update PDF 292 KB
Additional documents:
Minutes:
- Ms Surana introduced the Investment
Update
- During consideration of the update
the following comments were raised::
- Since the last Board meeting in
November 2024, Mercer had completed the equity and fixed income
investments review, and the Committee had made follow up decisions
in relation to the fund’s equity and fixed income mandates.
The Committee’s decisions on Global Equities had since been
implemented but the ones on Fixed income mandates had been paused
due to the developments in relation to asset pooling.
- Highlighted paragraph 3 which
presented the Fund’s asset allocation as of 30 June 2025 and
pointed out that the allocations were in line with the strategic
allocations and within tolerance ranges for the different asset
classes hence officers would not be recommending rebalancing to the
Pension Fund Committee.
- Paragraphs 4 and 5 in the summary
showed performance in the short and longer term
respectively. Whilst the Fund had
outperformed its strategic benchmark in the quarter and 1 year
period, it had underperformed the benchmark in the 3-year period.
It was noted that the Fund has a diversified investments strategy
which helps the Fund to manage risks and achieve its investment
objectives in the long run.
- The Fund improved its score on the
annual PRI survey which was a reflection on improved engagement by
the Fund and its investment managers when compared to previous
years.
- RESOLVED to note the
report.
|
11. |
Projects Update
Minutes:
|
12. |
Employer Governance Matters
Minutes:
- Mr Tagg presented the employment governance
matters update.
- During consideration
of the update a number of comments were raised:
a)
Mr Tagg updated Members on the Employment Governance Matters and
highlighted dates on future discussions with the Pension fund
committee.
- RESOLVED to
note the report.
|
13. |
Actuarial Valuation - Barnett Waddingham (Presentation)
Minutes:
|
14. |
Risk Register
Minutes:
1.Mrs Green presented the current risk
register
2.During consideration of the item the
following comments were raised::
(a)
Responded to questions on current and potential impacting risks and
the current trajectory of the risk register.
- RESOLVED to note the
report.
|
15. |
Pensions Review - Asset Pooling (Presentation)
Minutes:
|