The Local Pension Board of Redbridge Council met on Monday 02 March 2020 to discuss updates on pension fund matters, including investment performance and administration. The meeting also covered pension fund investment, adviser, and pooling arrangements.

Current Update on Pension Fund Matters

The board was scheduled to receive an update on current pension scheme matters and an overview of the Pension Fund's investment performance. The report indicated that there were no material breaches of regulations to report. The pension administration function, managed by a team of 7.88 full-time equivalents, was reported to be showing improved performance, with three out of four key performance indicators exceeding their targets between April and December 2019. Efforts to improve member self-service through the Altair facility were ongoing, with prompt messages included in email signatures. Data meetings were being held with employers to address data collection issues, and data cleansing was underway. The team was also undertaking in-house training and had signed up to an online training tool. Consideration was being given to creating a bespoke website for the pension fund, as the current shared website had limitations. The report also noted the completion of admission agreements with Coram, Mayfield School, and Birkin Clean, with some administrative issues still being resolved.

Regarding investment performance, the report indicated that as of 31 December 2019, the Pension Fund's value had increased by £6.560m to £860.458m. This growth was attributed to investors becoming less risk-averse following a Phase One Agreement between the USA and China, and a positive influence from the UK General Election results. The report detailed the performance of various fund managers against their objectives, including Schroders, Aberdeen Standard, and those managed via the London CIV (LCIV).

Pension Fund Investment, Advisers and Pooling Arrangements

This report was scheduled to provide information on the Pension Fund's investments, advisers, and pooling arrangements, in line with the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) Regulations 2013 and LGPS Investment Regulations 2016. The council had appointed Hymans Robertson as the Actuary to the Fund, with a contract effective from 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2021. The Actuary's role includes calculating the funding position of the Fund and setting employer contribution rates. Mercer was appointed as the Investment Adviser, with a contract from 1 April 2014 to 31 December 2020, to assist with the construction and implementation of the investment strategy.

The report highlighted that the government requires pension funds to pool their investments. The Redbridge Pension Fund is a member of the London CIV, and approximately 78.3% of the Fund was invested through this vehicle. The objective of pooling is to achieve cost savings for the Fund without compromising performance returns. The report also noted that all costs for investments and actuarial services are chargeable to the Pension Fund.

The meeting was also scheduled to address standard procedural items, including apologies for absence, the confirmation of minutes from the previous meeting held on 19 November 2019, and any other urgent items the Chair might decide to bring forward. The date of the next meeting was to be noted, with the Calendar of Meetings for the next municipal year to be agreed at Full Council in March 2020. A motion to exclude the public was also listed, indicating that exempt information might be discussed in private.