Agenda item

To consider the report and note the information

A comprehensive report was presented by the Pensions Manager providing a general overview of the administration of the Local Government Pension Scheme over the past year along with the activities that are undertaken by the Gwynedd Pension Fund to respond to current developments, maintain service standards and information about the work carried out over the period, and updates on various projects:

·          Regulatory Update – Fit for the Future – emphasis on accountability, professional standards and effective decision-making. Each LPG[EW1] S Fund will be required to appoint a designated Senior LGPS Officer to manage and administer the Pension Fund effectively, and appoint an Independent Person to be included on the Pensions Committee to provide an external challenge, support robust decision-making and strengthen governance oversight – appointments to be in place by 31 December 2026

·          Undertake a Governance Review to assess the effectiveness of existing governance structures – this work to be completed by 31 December 2026

·          LGPS Access and Fairness reforms to improve equality, accessibility and fairness across the LGPS. The work highlighted the challenge of reconciling and identifying cases where the reforms applied

·          Impact on administration – a request for the Fund to review procedures, assess historical cases, update Members' administration and communication processes, and prepare for new reporting requirements

·          Staffing update - welcome the appointment of an Apprentice and Trainee Pensions Officer

·          Additional Voluntary Contributions – due to challenges arising from the Fund's existing arrangements, Hymans Robertson had been commissioned to review the market to identify a better provider. Legal & General, who had good experience and benefits, were appointed to provide voluntary contribution arrangements for the Fund's members, and discussions were taking place to set a timetable for transfers.

·          New Payroll System – current plans for testing the new system to begin during Autumn 2026, with the new system expected to be operational in early 2027

·          McCloud Remedy – progress remained positive and work was on track to complete the remaining project work (as per the agreed timetable).

Reference was made to the continued success of 'My Pension Online' noting that the portal's membership continued to grow steadily with 8,200 Members having registered to the new portal. It was reported that the Gwynedd Pension Fund was exploring opportunities to further expand the portal's functionality, including the introduction of digital forms. It was reiterated that following the success of AI videos, they planned to make greater use of videos so that Members could access specific pension topics.

Attention was drawn to the Service Satisfaction Survey which was sent to Members at the end of key processes, such as retirements and the payment of reimbursements, to gather views on the quality of the service received. It was reported that 89 members had taken part in the survey with the result being very encouraging (95% of users strongly agreed or agreed that the quality was of a high standard and 97% strongly agreed or agreed that the service provided by staff met a high standard).

The members expressed their thanks for the report.

During the ensuing discussion, the following observations were made by the Board Members:

·        Thanks for the information.

·        A lot of work was being done in response to changes and the service remained very satisfactory

·        Particular thanks for the McCloud work and for sticking to the timetable

In the context of appointing an independent person for the Pensions Committee, who would need to "fit in", and what the process of selecting that person would be, it was noted that the framework included details of individuals who had competencies for carrying out the task – they intended to appoint from this pool. It was added that Hymans Robertson led on investment advice, but the aspect of governance also needed to be considered. The successful person would need to have extensive LGPS experience and have specialist knowledge in the areas of investment and governance.

In response to a comment regarding the new payroll system and the challenges the Unit would face of not printing and posting payslips or replicating the existing arrangement whereby a paper payslip is only issued when there is a pension payment change of more than £10 compared to the previous month, it was noted that although they accepted there would be more telephone calls, the paperwork would reduce because of My Pension Online. It was reiterated that most queries related to a new tax code.

In the context of historic cases of Fairness Reforms and the need to look back over 15 years to ensure that the correct benefits were being paid, and whether the Unit had adequate resources to complete the work within the timeframe, it was noted that a systems company was looking at how to identify cases but that system was not able to calculate the benefits – the work had to be completed manually. Once the numbers have been identified, they planned to hold discussions with the systems company to try to figure out a way of reconciling the information.

In response to a question about adequate resources to cope with the additional work, it was noted that the appointment of a Trainee Pensions Officer was welcome news and that this role would be used specifically for supporting the governance element. It was reiterated that it was challenging to meet governance requirements and once the Senior LGPS Officer had been appointed, there would be an opportunity to review the structure to ensure that the additional work was being addressed.

In response to a comment that 8,200 Members had signed up to the new portal and whether the number was a fair representation of all Members, it was noted that there was a good representation from all groups but the 30-40 age group had the smallest percentage which may be because a pension was not a priority for them at the moment.

In response to a question about risks arising from transferring Members' Additional Voluntary Contributions from Clerical Medical to Legal & General, it was noted that the greatest risk would be to stay with Clerical Medical. It was reiterated that Legal & General offered a better experience, a wider range of investment options, lower fees and better online functionality.

In the context of the Satisfaction Survey and whether 89 responses out of all the Fund's Members gave a reliable picture of the situation, it was accepted that the figure was low, but Members were willing to complain directly if they were not happy with the experience. The intention was to introduce an on-line questionnaire rather than on paper, therefore it was hoped that they would get a better response in future.

RESOLVED to accept and note the information.