Agenda and minutes

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Venue: CHG:04 - County Hall, Preston, PR1 0LD. View directions

Contact: Mike Neville  (01772) 533431 Email: mike.neville@lancashire.gov.uk

Items
No. Item

Jo Darbyshire, Director of Administration, Local Pensions Partnership

Abbi Leech, Head of the Pension Fund, Lancashire County Council.

Mukhtar Master, Governance & Risk Officer, Lancashire County Council

Mike Neville, Senior Democratic Services Officer, Lancashire County Council.

Quorum

The Chair informed the meeting that as only one employer representative was present (C Gibson) the Board was inquorate and, therefore, unable to make any formal decisions. It was noted that whilst apologies had been received from two employer representatives (T Pounder and S Thompson) County Councillor Wakeford was expected to attend, though he may have been delayed.

 

In the circumstances it was proposed that those members of the Board present continue to discuss the items on the agenda without making any formal decisions and in the event that County Councillor Wakeford arrived those decisions could then be ratified by the Board. Should the Board remain inquorate a record of the meeting would be circulated to all Board members for information and presented to the next meeting for approval.

1.

Constitution, Membership and Terms of Reference of the Board pdf icon PDF 22 KB

Minutes:

The Chair welcomed Deborah Parker, who had recently been appointed by the County Council to fill the vacancy for a Scheme Member representative, to her first meeting. It was noted that a report on the review of the Terms of Reference was due to be presented to the Board in January 2020 and it was suggested that the review include consideration of amending the quorum for future meetings.

 

Recommendations:

 

1.  That the current constitution and membership of the Lancashire Local Pension Board, as set out below, is noted.

 

Mr W Bourne - Independent Chair

County Councillor C Wakeford - Employer representative (Lancashire County Council)

Mr T Pounder - Employer representative (Lancashire County Council)

Mr S Thompson - Employer representative (Unitary, City, Borough Councils and Police/Fire)

Mr C Gibson - Employer representative (Other Employers)

Ms K Haigh - Scheme member representative.

Ms Y Moult - Scheme member representative.

Mr K Wallbank - Scheme member representative.

Ms D Parker - Scheme member representative.

 

2.  That the current Terms of Reference of the Board, as referred to in the report presented and set out in the Minute Book, are noted.

 

2.

Apologies

Minutes:

It was reported that apologies for absence had been received from two of the four employer representatives on the Board - Mr T Pounder and Mr S Thompson.

 

3.

Disclosure of Pecuniary and Non-Pecuniary Interests

Minutes:

The Chair asked that members of the Board review their current entry in the Register of Interests and advise Mr Neville of any amendments so that the Register could be updated.  No declarations of interest were made at the meeting in relation to items appearing on the agenda.

 

4.

Minutes of the Last Meeting pdf icon PDF 233 KB

To be confirmed, and signed by the Chair.

Minutes:

With regard to item 6 it was reported that the scheduled briefing session on record keeping and reporting breaches of the law had been moved to 1.30pm on the 15th October 2019 to enable Mr Livesey from Mercers to give a presentation to the Board on the Actuarial Valuation of the Fund.

 

Recommendations:

 

1.  That the briefing session on record keeping and reporting breaches of the law scheduled for the 9th July now be held at 1.30pm ahead of the Board on the 15th October 2019.

 

2.  That the Minutes of the meeting held on the 30th April 2019 are confirmed as an accurate record and signed by the Chair.

 

5.

Presentation by Mr J Livesey from Mercers on the valuation

Minutes:

As referred to under the previous item Mr Livesey from Mercers had given a presentation to the Board on Actuarial Valuations at 1.30pm in advance of the meeting.

 

6.

Regulatory Update pdf icon PDF 224 KB

Minutes:

The Head of Fund presented a report which updated the Board on the following pension regulatory matters.

 

·  Consultation on implementation of late retirement factors

·  Consultation on the local valuation cycle and management of employer risk

·  Consultation on the Fair Deal – strengthening pension protection.

·  Guidance in relation to the cost cap process and arising from the McCloud case.

·  Exit Payment reform

 

It was reported that the proposal for FE/HE institutions in England to no longer be required to offer membership of the Local Government Pension Scheme to new entrant non-teaching staff was not considered to be a significant issue in Lancashire. With regard to the McCloud legal case the Head of Fund reported that it was still unclear as to the impact the decision would have on the Local Government Pension Scheme.

 

Recommendation: That the updates on regulatory matters set out in the report and given at the meeting are noted.

 

 

7.

Draft Lancashire County Pension Fund Communications Policy pdf icon PDF 119 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Mr Wallbank, as the Lead Member on Communications, presented his views on the draft update to the communications policy for the Lancashire County Pension Fund as set out in the report. The Board recognised that the draft policy was still a work in progress and a final version would be presented to the Pension Fund Committee in November 2019.

 

Recommendation:  That members of the Board send any comments they may have on the draft new Communications Policy for the Local Government Pension Scheme to the Head of Fund so that they can be taken into account when preparing the final version for submission to the Pension Fund Committee in November 2019 for approval.

 

 

The Head of Fund confirmed that County Councillor Wakeford was unable to attend the meeting as his car had broken down on the motorway. In the circumstances the Board members present agreed continue to discuss the remaining items on the agenda with a record of any recommendations being presented to the subsequent meeting.

 

 

8.

Update on Part I reports presented to the recent Pension Fund Committee pdf icon PDF 132 KB

Minutes:

The Head of Fund presented a report on matters considered by the Pension Fund Committee on the 21st June 2019 under Part I of the agenda.

 

2018/19 Annual Report – It was recognised that there were some sections in the draft where text needed to be finalised and it was suggested that if members of the Board had any comments on the draft they should forward them to the Head of Fund.

 

Internal Audit Assurance – The Head of Fund confirmed that the Committee had been informed that the outstanding internal audits of the Local Pensions Partnership referred to in the report had been completed. In view of the update the Committee had agreed the Head of Internal Audit review the findings of all the audits and present a further report to the Committee in September 2019 in order to give an assurance on the administration and investment operations of the Partnership. It was also suggested that the Head of Fund meet with the Head of Internal Audit to discuss the concerns expressed by the Board with regard to the Key Performance Indicators for the Local Pensions Partnership which were not considered to reflect the experience of the Fund membership.

 

The Board noted the new branding for the Lancashire County Pension Fund which had been approved by the Committee.

 

Recommendations:

 

1.  That members of the Board forward any comments they may have on the draft 2018/19 Annual Report for the Lancashire County Pension Fund to the Head of Fund for consideration.

 

2.  That the Chair raise the concerns of the Board regarding to the Key Performance Indicators for the Local Pensions Partnership, which were not considered to reflect the experience of the Fund membership, with the Chair of the Pension Fund Committee.

 

3.  That the reports considered by the Pension Fund Committee on the 21st June 2019 under Part I of the agenda and decisions taken are noted

9.

Feedback from members of the Board on pension related training, conferences and events. pdf icon PDF 23 KB

Minutes:

A report was presented on pension related training which members of the Board had undertaken since the last meeting. Individual members gave feedback on their experiences at the events referred to in the report which were all considered to have been informative. It was also reported that Mr Thompson and Mrs Haigh had completed some online modules from the Pension Regulator Public Service Toolkit in addition to those referred to in the report and that the 2019/20 Training Record had been updated accordingly.

 

Recommendation: That the feedback given at the meeting on training received by members of the Board is noted.

 

10.

Review of 2018/19 Training Record for Board members pdf icon PDF 126 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Board considered a report on the 2018/19 Training Record which listed internal workshops, external conferences/seminars which members of the Board had attended over the year together with online training modules which they had completed.

 

Recommendation: That the 2018/19 Training Record, as set out in the Appendix to the report presented, is noted. 

11.

Urgent Business

An item of urgent business may only be considered under this heading where, by reason of special circumstances to be recorded in the minutes, the Chair of the meeting is of the opinion that the item should be considered at the meeting as a matter of urgency. Wherever possible, the Chief Executive should be given advance warning of any Member's intention to raise a matter under this heading.

Minutes:

No items of business were raised under this heading.

 

12.

Date of Next Meeting

The next scheduled meeting of the Board will be held on the 15th October 2019 at 2pm in Meeting Room CHG 04 at County Hall, Preston.

Minutes:

It was noted that the next scheduled meeting of the Board would be held on the 15th October 2019 in Room CHG: 04 at County Hall, Preston at 2.00pm and preceded by a lunch for Board members at 1.00pm and a briefing session on record keeping and reporting breaches of the law starting at 1.30pm.

 

13.

Exclusion of Press and Public

The Board is asked to consider whether, under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act, 1972, it considers that the public should be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following items of business on the grounds that there would be a likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in the appropriate paragraph of Part I of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act, 1972, as indicated against the heading to the item.

Minutes:

Recommendation: That the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following items of business on the grounds that there would be a likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in the appropriate paragraphs of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act, 1972, as indicated on each item. It is considered that in all the circumstances the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

 

The Chair informed the Board that he would take item 15 as the next item of business so that the Director of Pension Administration from the Local Pensions Partnership could join the meeting, present her report and then leave.

 

14.

Pension service administration update

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972. It was considered that in all the circumstances of the case the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighed the public interest in disclosing the information.

 

Jo Darbyshire, the newly appointed Director of Pensions Administration from the Local Pensions Partnership, gave the Board an overview of the pension administration service and an update on performance and stabilisation activity. In considering the report members of the Board recognised the improvements to the service to date and made a number of suggestions for further action.

 

Recommendations: 

 

1.  That the Board recognise the improvements to date in relation to performance and stabilisation of the pension administration service of the Local Pensions Partnership. 

 

2.  That the Service Level Agreement for the pension administration service be reviewed in order to ensure that it reflects the journey for members of the Fund.

 

3.  That the Director of Pensions Administration consider using the CfA Customer Service Excellence framework to identify examples of best practice, drive customer-focused change, evaluate the quality of the customer experience and steer future improvements of the pension administration service.

 

4.  That the recommendations of the Advisory Group on the pension administration service, as reported to the Board in April 2019, be forwarded to the Director of Pensions Administration for information.

 

5.  That future reporting on the performance of the pension administration service include a clear narrative regarding Key Performance Indicators and compliance with the Service Level Agreement.

 

6.  That the services available via My Pension Service Online be
publicised and employers engaged in encouraging members of the Fund to sign up to the facility in order to reduce demand on the Contact Centre.

 

 

15.

Update on Part II reports presented to the recent Pension Fund Committee

Minutes:

Exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972. It was considered that in all the circumstances of the case the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighed the public interest in disclosing the information.

 

The Head of Fund presented a report on matters which had been considered by the Pension Fund Committee on the 21st June 2019 and highlighted the following.

 

Local Pensions Partnership Update to 31st March 2019 - the Board would have an opportunity to comment on a 5 year plan which would be presented to the Pension Fund Committee in November 2019.

 

Investment Panel Report - members of the Pension Fund Committee would be given a briefing on the risk framework and risk appetite for the Fund in advance of a report being presented to the meeting on the 20th September 2019. 

 

Risk Register - The Committee had considered the current risk summary document and risk register for the Fund and agreed that future reports should include a narrative for the movement of individual risk ratings in the risk summary document and an amended register to present information on individual risks in a clearer, more easily readable format. 

 

Recommendation: That the reports considered by the Pension Fund Committee on the 21st June 2019 under Part II of the agenda and the decisions taken, are noted.

 

16.

Lancashire County Pension Fund Breaches Log

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972. It was considered that in all the circumstances of the case the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighed the public interest in disclosing the information.

 

The Governance and Risk Officer informed the meeting that for the period covered by the report there had been no breaches in relation to contribution payments and two data breaches, neither of which had been deemed significant enough to warrant reporting to the Information Commissioner.

 

Recommendation – That the update in relation to the Lancashire County Pension Fund Breaches Log up to 30th June 2019 is noted.