06 February 2025
5 min
January was off to a flyer in the LGPS, with funds in England and Wales completing their final responses to the ‘Fit for the future’ consultation. The results of our LGPS National Knowledge Assessment are now available, and both actuaries and funds were I’m sure delighted to see the latest FSS guidance appear.
We fully understand the Government's ambitions for the LGPS outlined in its "Fit for the Future" consultation and are strong supporters of the pooling initiative. We also see the potential for the scheme to make more investments that catalyse UK growth. However, the substantial changes in the scope and scale of the Pools represents a major undertaking, with a proposed timeline that is hazardously ambitious. This creates several risks and unintended consequences for the LGPS, which need greater scrutiny and thinking through. We’ve set out these concerns in a detailed response to each of the consultation questions.
On 27 January we launched our 2024 NKA National Report, containing the aggregated results from all participating funds. This latest NKA is our largest assessment to date, covering 22 LGPS funds and with over 250 participating members. A large cross-section of LGPS funds were represented, with English, Welsh and Scottish funds taking part.
The start of 2025 saw the release of new guidance for funds when preparing Funding Strategy Statements (FSSs). The timing of this release couldn’t be better – LGPS funds can now prepare their FSSs early in the valuation process and use these to facilitate high quality consultations with employers. The guidance sets out a common structure for funds to follow, along with a helpful checklist. Its goal is to ensure that users of the FSS (principally, participating employers) understand exactly how funding strategy applies to them.
If you have any questions, or would like to discuss anything further, please get in touch.
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