Independent Trusteeship

Independent Trusteeship

With the introduction of the Pensions Act 2021 there is now a tidal wave of Governance and skills required to be a trustee of an Occupational Pension Scheme.

Indeed the Pension Regulator (tPR) now has enhanced powers to take both criminal or civil proceeds against trustees and/or sponsors. There is a growing trend for trustee boards to consider appointing an “independent trustee” or move to a sole trustee arrangement. A traditional trustee board is a collection of individuals who together act as a trustee board. They will be nominated by the members or employer or be a person or company completely independent of the sponsoring employer who sits alongside the other individuals. An independent trustee can provide an additional layer of expertise and professionalism to help the Board with:

• Road to buy-in or buy-out
• Governance including Risk Registers/SIP/Business Plan/ESG strategy/Chairmans statement/Accounts
• De-risking exercises (including Transfer exercises FRO/BAU)
• Pension Regulator reporting
• Dealing and monitoring support providers including Administration/Actuarial/Audit/Legal/Comms
• HS Trustees offer years of experience to support your Chairman and Trustee Board with the complexities of running an “occupational” scheme.