After delivering the Phase 2 report last year, the LGPS Scheme Advisory Board (SAB) for England and Wales asked Hymans to push forward with the working group and secretariat on more detailed implementation proposals. The project team updated the SAB at the meeting on 25th August 2020. 

Progress over recent months has been, understandably, a bit slower, as stakeholders have focussed on responding to immediate issues relating to the COVID-19 crisis. However, the project team has progressed discussions with a number of parties and worked to develop thinking around some of the more challenging areas in the proposals including:

• The LGPS senior officer role;
• Service delivery KPIs; and
• The independent governance review process.

The SAB has re-iterated its commitment to this work and the project team will aim to have three key deliverables completed and agreed with the working group over the next month or so. 

• A report setting out implementation advice for the proposals in Phase 2.  Some proposals don’t need much further detail, but we will include further development on the more challenging areas the working groups have identified as above.

The other two deliverables are sample or draft versions of the two main outputs:

• A sample version of what a Fund’s new Governance Compliance Statement (GCS) might look like including all the information in the proposals.
• A sample independent governance review report (IGR) which should help in developing procurement proposals for the independent governance review process.

We continue to welcome input from all LGPS stakeholders as we move towards drafting implementation proposals for the SAB. Please do get in touch with Catherine McFadyen or Ian Colvin if you’d like to discuss any element of the proposals.

The timetable thereafter will depend on the capacity within MHCLG and other LGPS stakeholders to progress to implementation of the proposals and consult on formal guidance given other priorities.