Hymans Robertson has published a new interactive guide to help pension trustees understand the requirements of the Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures “TCFD” ahead of regulations for pension schemes coming into force on 1 October.

Initially, trustees of schemes with assets over £5billion will need to work ensure that they are identifying and effectively managing climate risk across their pension scheme to ensure compliance with TCFD requirements, warns the leading pensions and financial services consultancy, with smaller schemes coming into scope next year. The new guide covers five key areas – governance, strategy, risk management, metrics and targets, and reporting outcomes – which must all be complied with to meet the TCFD requirements.

Commenting on the interactive guide, Simon Jones, Head of Responsible Investment, says:

“We fully support the considerable efforts made to create legislation and guidance that recognises the important role UK pension schemes must play in combatting climate risk. It is good to see the UK Government being ambitious in setting legally binding climate targets and emphasising the role that the financial services industry can pay in creating change. TCFD is one of various requirements that will impact the pensions industry in the next few months, so the challenge for schemes is to continue to remain on the front foot as these changes come into effect. It will be important for trustees to make sure the journey to becoming TCFD compliant remains straightforward.

“Many trustees, however, will be feeling overwhelmed by these requirements and the fast approaching October deadline. There is a learning curve but we believe it vital to try and make the consideration of climate risk a part of everyday scheme management. Our guide sets out the steps trustees can follow to make sure they have a robust approach to managing climate risk within their scheme and put themselves in a position to report clearly against the TCFD requirements.”