Agenda and draft minutes

Members and officers must declare any pecuniary or personal interest, or any potential conflicts of interest in any business on the agenda. They should also make declarations at any stage such an interest becomes apparent during the meeting. Consideration should be given to leaving the meeting if the nature of the interest warrants it. If in doubt, contact Democratic Services before the meeting.

14.1     None declared.

To confirm the part I minutes of the meeting of the Board held on 20 May 2024.

15.1     Resolved – That the minutes of the meeting of the Board held on 20 May 2024 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

The Board is asked to note the unconfirmed Part I minutes from the meeting of the Pensions Committee on 26 April 2024 and the agenda from the meeting of the Pensions Committee on 24 July 2024.

16.1     The Board considered the unconfirmed part I minutes from the 26 April 2024 Pensions Committee meeting and the Agenda from the 24 July 2024 Pensions Committee meeting (copies appended to the signed minutes).

16.2     Resolved – That the minutes and agenda were noted.

Report by the Chair of the Pension Advisory Board.

The Board is asked to note the updates to the Business Plans of the Board.

17.1     The Board considered a report by the Chair of the Pension Advisory Board (copy appended to the signed minutes).

17.2     The Chair introduced the report and noted the references to the change of Government following the General Election. There is no clear indication as yet on whether a different approach will be taken to Funds, there is expected to be a review but it is too early to predict if there will be any impact. There has been no reference made to the pooling arrangements already established. Also noted that the investment fee rises are to do with greater transparency. Fees are higher if more complex investments are made therefore cannot look at fees in isolation as won’t be comparing like with like.

17.3     Rachel Wood, Pension Fund Strategist, explained that a letter was received by s151 officers ahead of the election asking for information on pooling arrangements. It would seem that the review centres around consolidating Funds in order to achieve efficiencies. Collaboration already exists. Also explained the progress made on achieving the Business Plan targets. The Team is looking at compliance with the General Code of Practice with the intention to present any issues or necessary actions to the Board meeting in November. The conflict of interest policy will also be refreshed.  Highlighted cyber security as an issue being addressed by the appointment of a contractor to map issues and any actions required. Working with Hampshire Pension Services to prioritise and focus resources to improve data management.

17.4     Vickie Hampshire, Pension Fund Governance, provided a risk up-date specifically highlighting changes in quarter one; resourcing pressures, admissions, Member vacancies, cyber security and the role of Government in relation to regulation changes. More visibility in terms of both the theme and under-lying red risks will be provided in future.

17.5     The Board made comments including those that follow.

·         Queried the Government mandate to pooling assets if no progress is made by March 2025. Chair and officers clarified that Government policy is not clear at the moment so will need to await the outcome of the review.

·         Suggested that a list of questions for employers to provide to bidders for external payroll services would be useful at the bidding stage so that they are aware of what information is required by the Pensions Team. Officers agreed that a conversation ahead of procurement would be a good idea in order to build requirements into the contract specification.

·         Clarification was sought around the procurement of a cyber security contractor. Officers are aware of the key dependencies that exist between the Pension Fund and West Sussex County Council and are therefore working with IT specialists to gain knowledge and understanding of what needs to be looked for. Planning to have the contractor appointed by the end of the calendar year.

·         Chair asked for information around the scale of the issues around the Guaranteed Minimum Pension (GMP). This involves a complex calculation and interactions and determines how the Pension Fund increases. It affects  ...  view the full minutes text for item 17.

The Board is asked to consider the Administration Report from the 24 July 2024 Pensions Committee by the Interim Director of Finance and Support Services.

18.1     The Board considered the report by the Interim Director of Finance and Support Services from the 24 July 2024 Pensions Committee (copy appended to the signed minutes).

18.2     Rachel Wood introduced the report explaining that the report was given a light focus at Pensions Committee due to an in-depth dedicated item being scheduled for the November meeting of the Committee. The Annual Benefit Statements are due at the end of August with the majority of data being received. The Administration Team are currently working on queries to ensure compliance. There has been one data breach which was low level and a pro-active resolution took place. There has been an increase in work in progress activity which is expected as casework increases at year end. Confirmed that the Pensions Committee were pleased with casework performance.

18.3     Andrew Lowe, Hampshire Pension Services, confirmed that the partnership has been in place for five years. The relationship is now well established and is working well to enable good performance to be maintained. The Annual Benefit Statements are on-track with no concerns to be addressed.

18.4     The Board made comments including those that follow.

·         Number of information clarification questions were raised which officers responded to at the meeting. 

·         Sought information on why there were so many late payments in November. Officers explained that 14 of the 21 late payments were from schools which were impacted by school holidays, three also had a new payroll provider. The issue will be anticipated in future with a reminder in advance as to what is required and the timeline.  Confirmation was given that all late payments have now been received.

·         There is an escalation process in place for end of year processes which is being refined with payroll providers to enable better compliance. The process enables all late payments and data requests to be tracked. The Administration Team will first contact the employer for payment/data, if the deadline is not met the issue is escalated to the Pension Fund Team. The process works well with a strong focus on resolution resulting in a reduction in the number of queries being dealt with.

·         More information was requested in future reports around data breaches so that the Board is aware of the actions being taken.

·         Asked about how legislation changes following the McCloud review is being applied and the controls in place to ensure full data is received. Andrew Lowe explained that a large exercise has taken place over the last few years to ensure compliance. All guidance is followed in relation to any data gaps.

·         Queried the methodology used to calculate the SLA KPIs. Andrew Lowe explained that it is the amount of time to reach a resolution and confirmed that some sit outside of the SLA timelines. Requested that in future reports it would be helpful to know if any SLA targets are going to be missed, it is difficult to interpret the data currently included as the tables included in the report cannot be easily linked together.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 18.

Report by Interim Director of Finance and Support Services.

The Board is asked note the update.

19.1     The Board considered the report by the Interim Director of Finance and Support Services (copy appended to the signed minutes).

19.2     Rachel Wood introduced the report explaining that a consultant has been appointed and a strategy is currently being developed. The paper outlines the options in relation to the Retirement Living Standards (RLS); how to apply to the LGPS, focus on how much pay in and links to financial planning options and working with Pensions and Lifetime Saving Association (PLSA)on communication and the Pay Your Pension Some Attention Campaign; lot of material available, looking at how this can be promoted and whether there is any national dialogue that could be used.

19.3     The Board made comments including those that follow.

·         Need to have a focus on how many people don’t claim all their pension as a lot of work is needed to align everything and keep on track.

·         Need to keep the messaging simple and also stress the importance and value of the state pension.

·         Need to focus on what income is needed to live the lifestyle they want, not just the pension amount. There is some difficult messaging to take place but need to enable an individual to think clearly about what they need.

·         Branding options need to be vibrant and stress the importance of living life to the full. This needs earlier engagement with individuals.

19.4     Resolved – That the Board notes the up-date.

Report by the Chair of the Pension Advisory Board.

The Board is asked to note the current issues relating to Scheme Regulations and Governance.

20.1     The Board considered a report by the Chair of the Pension Advisory Board (copy appended to the signed minutes).

20.2     The Chair introduced the report explaining that Annual Benefit Statements will include details required as a result of the McCloud review from next year. Statutory guidance is expected on how to implement the McCloud reforms. The deadline for connecting to the Dashboard is 31^st October. It is expected that this will be accessible to the public in 2026. The Chair asked the Board if they are content for presentational changes to be made to the format of the report in future.

20.3     Vickie Hampshire highlighted the availability of LGPS Live which is a good source of information on expected issues and changes. The link will be shared with members of the Board. Requested that if members access the system to let her know so that it can be recorded on the training log.

20.4     Resolved – That the Board agreed to the Chair’s presentational changes and noted the current issues relating to Scheme Regulations and Governance.

Report by Interim Director of Finance and Support Services.

The Board is asked to note the register of policy documents and provide feedback on the policies presented at the meeting.

21.1     The Board considered a report by the Interim Director of Finance and Support Services (copy appended to the signed minutes).

21.2     Vickie Hampshire introduced the report and asked members to consider the list of policy documents at Appendix A. Explained that the Annual Report (Appendix C) links to the Pension Fund Accounts and now reflects the additional requirements set out in March 2024 (‘Preparing the Pension Fund Annual Report: Guidance for Local Government Pension Scheme Funds’). Any areas where the report is non-compliant is explained but it is expected to be fully compliant next year. Non-compliance is largely around where further information/clarity is needed on the new requirements.

21.3     The Board made comments including those that follow.

·         Thanked the Team for early adoption of the requirements and the work undertaken to comply with all the changes.

·         A number of presentational and clearer information suggestions for the Annual Report were made which officers will take forwards.

·         Asked about whether any scheme member events are planned. Officers will liaise with the Administration Team on this.

·         Asked whether any targets are being set in relation to employer performance. Rachel Wood explained that there is no formal expectation around this and are still learning as to what constitutes as “good” in relation to the employer journey. Vickie Hampshire confirmed that figures for 2023/24 will be included before the report is published.

·         Liked the summary provided in the report. Vickie Hampshire explained that a link to this document would be included in the email informing members that their Annual Benefits Statements are available to make the information more accessible to Fund Members

21.4     Resolved – That the Board notes the register of policy documents and provided feedback on the Annual Report presented.

The Board is asked to consider the Investment Strategy Consultation Report from the 24 July 2024 Pensions Committee by the Interim Director of Finance and Support Services.

22.1     The Board considered the report by the Interim Director of Finance and Support Services from the 24 July 2024 Pensions Committee (copy appended to the signed minutes).

22.2     Vickie Hampshire introduced the report explaining that a consultation exercise was completed to comply with regulations. 41,000 consultation e-mails were sent with 26 responses received. There were no themes to the responses received and no changes are proposed. The consultation responses will be considered further when the Strategy is reviewed in February 2025.

22.3     The Board made comments including those that follow.

·         Commented on the low response rates. Vickie Hampshire thought that the strategy has probably been read but if there are no comments then no response to the consultation was submitted. Officers would ask IT if they can identify the “hit” rate on the Strategy as it would be good to know how many people have read it. It is planned to look at engaging differently in future to gather a higher response rate.

·         Recognised that the consultation needs to be worthwhile and accessible. Different options would be considered including bespoke sessions with employers or including a form to be completed rather than leaving it as free text completely.  The Investment Strategy Statement will be reviewed as part of the upcoming triennial valuation.

22.4     Resolved – That the Board considered the Investment Strategy Consultation Report from the 24 July Pensions Committee.

The next meeting of the Board will be held at 9.30 am on Monday 11 November 2024.

23.1     The Board noted that its next scheduled meeting would take place on Monday 11 November 2024 at 9.30 a.m. at County hall, Chichester.

The Board is asked to consider in respect of the following item(s) whether the public, including the press, should be excluded from the meeting on the grounds of exemption under Part I of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, as indicated below, and because, in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption of that information outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

Exempt: paragraph 3, financial or business affairs of any person (including the authority).

Resolved – That under Section 100(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following item of business on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part I, of Schedule 12A, of the Act by virtue of the paragraph set out below and that, in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption of that information outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

Exempt: Paragraph 3, financial or business affairs of another person (including the authority)

To confirm the part II minutes of the meeting of the Board held on 20 May 2024.

The Board agreed the Part II minutes of the 20 May 2024 meeting and they were signed by the Chair.

The Board is asked to note the confirmed Part II minutes from the meeting of the Pensions Committee on 26 April 2024 (yellow paper).

The Board noted the contents of Part II minutes from the 26 April 2024 Pensions Committee meeting.

The Board is asked to consider the following report which went to the Pensions Committee on 24 July 2024.

Report by the Interim Director of Finance and Support Services attached for members of the Board only (yellow paper).

The Board considered the report by the Interim Director of Finance and Support Services from the 24 July 2024 Pensions Committee (copy appended to the signed minutes).

The Board noted the report.

The Board is asked to consider the following report which went to the Pensions Committee on 24 July 2024.

Report by the Interim Director of Finance and Support Services attached for members of the Board only (yellow paper).

The Board considered the report by the Interim Director of Finance and Support Services from the 24 July 2024 Pensions Committee (copy appended to the signed minutes).

The Board noted the report.