All in favour say “aye” – How might board diversity change our decision-making ...

The Pensions Regulator has made its position clear – diverse and inclusive boards make better decisions. So across the pensions industry, trustee boards are thinking about how to increase their diversity (it’s not always easy to...

Good scheme admin matters – are you thinking about it enough?

Flick back through your trusted trustee meeting packs and you’ll find, doubtless tucked away somewhere near the back, the quarterly admin report.  Always there. Always in the same format. (Almost) always rushed at the end of the...

Communicating with members? Don’t write like an (old fashioned) lawyer

Lawyers aren’t particularly well-known for their concise, accessible and easy to understand writing.  But we should be, and we’ve come a long way from when every other sentence contained a Latin phrase and where commas were something...

Supporting members during the cost of living crisis

As we head into winter (which seems to come around quicker every year), minds may begin to wander back to last year’s colder months and the rising energy costs that came with them.  During that period, plenty of trustees were concerned...

Five takeaways from the DWP’s review of TPR

The DWP recently published the outcome of its review of TPR. The report concludes that TPR is “broadly well-run and well regarded” and has a “strong relationship with the DWP”. Notable successes include the implementation of...

A new DC decumulation framework (aka rethinking the pension freedoms)

As part of its Mansion House reforms announced in July, the Government published a consultation (which has since closed) on a new policy framework to support DC members in trust based schemes in decumulation. If I’ve lost you already...

DB pension trustees – what’s my goal again?

If you’re a trustee of a DB pension scheme then the Chancellor’s Mansion House speech in July may have left you scratching your head.  How can the government’s “drive to promote economic growth”, and the role of pension schemes...

What happens when the pensions industry gets drawn into bigger world events?

Want to hear more on the LDI crisis and the Virgin Media case? Click here to listen to James and Pete’s recent podcast where they dive deeper into the subject. So much of what we do is complex and technical.  To the outside...

Is it a bird, is it a plane… no it’s a superfund!

When my son asked me if the latest superfunds guidance I was reading was connected to Superman, I thought this would be a fitting title for a blog! Just like Superman, you need to squint quite hard at the moment to see any sign of...

Is teamwork making your trustee dream work?

We all know the saying – “Teamwork makes the dream work” – that a good team is stronger together and more than the sum of its parts. High functioning teams work together to achieve a shared goal in an atmosphere of mutual respect,...