Agenda item

A report for the committee’s ongoing oversight of:

·         Scheme, Regulatory, Legal and Fund Update

·         Risk Register

·         Administration KPI update – 1 July 2023 to 30 September 2023

a)    Key business plan items – Aggregation Backlogs / i-Connect & Controls / Resourcing. Plus, presentation of a general business plan update. 

b)    Outsourcing updates

c)    Review of Annual Benefit Statement and Pension Savings Statement issuance

·         Audit update

a)    Audit update

b)    SWAP Audit 2022/23

c)    Training plan update 2023/24

Jennifer Devine, Head of Wiltshire Pension Fund, supported by other officers, presented the Headlines and Monitoring report. The report included that regarding the backlog project, Hymans had completed 2,5k cases and it was thought that the work would be done in January with Aon aware that they need to complete their remaining 200 cases by the end of the year, which was dependent on a calculator for dependents being built.

Reference was drawn to the business plan priority area progress updates on page 44 of the agenda, which outlined that resourcing had a progress rating of red. It was outlined that four roles needed to be filled and that a lot of effort needed to be put into training and improving morale, as suggested by a staff survey.

Information regarding the Risk Register covering the period from April to September was provided, with the most noticeable change being that investment had changed from red to green progress rating. Fund governance had changed from green to amber, however this was mostly to do with the audit strategy and fraud case, which was now largely concluded. Data management had also improved from red to amber, with a lot of annual benefit statements issued.

It was updated that KPI audits had taken place over the course of November, and it was hoped that something could be brought to the December meeting.

The actions log for the KFC audit was discussed, with it noted that there had been good progress made since the last assessment on 16 October and that a new audit from SWAP was now awaited. Key elements outstanding included policies and procedures had now been drafted but would need to be signed off, though some target dates had been missed. It was also asked that the aggregation process be extended to 31 March 2024 to align with Status 2 “to be decided cases”, with the primary reason being its close relationship with what actions should be taken on identifying case types.

An update was provided on training, which included that a training plan would be circulated for Member consultation, which would cover the next scheme year. It was hoped that the training plan could be brought to the December meeting for approval.

The Committee discussed the report and presentation in detail, with the following comments received but not limited to discussion around the failure to find an Employer Services Manager and how this has impacted the Fund. It was stated that though the role had been advertised 5 times, the correct calibre of applicant hadn’t been found and that other local authorities had struggled to such roles even with a higher salary.

Positive feedback was received regarding the streamlining of work streams and the introduction of recipe cards to improve efficiency and effectiveness.

It was clarified that that the risk relating to “Project” had moved from an amber rating to red due to an Aon project being delayed, which should have finished in October and would now finish in December. Clarity was also provided regarding audit approvals, that the process of signing off audit approvals could be reviewed.

Feedback was provided regarding the 2022/23 training programme. Whilst the content was good, some Members felt training sessions would be better placed at the end of the meeting. Further points relating to training included concerns about the MIFID II self-certification, with a desire expressed for members to receive some training on this area, or direction to written document. It was outlined by officers that there was- no legal requirement to sign the self-certification form and that it was just a preference of the Fund so that it can demonstrate that its professional client status can be maintained. The use of experts for assurance when making decisions was also discussed.

Further detail was provided regarding the risk register fund governance, with part one of the recommendations with the audit plan for the next year set to come to the Committee in December. Discussion also took place regarding the contract for internal  audit work and that should there be areas which the Fund desired to be investigated, the Fund should be able to pay for a specific contract. The officer also advocated the continued use of SWAP..

At the conclusion of debate, it was,

Resolved:

The Committee agreed to:

a)    to approve the risk register recommendations made by the Board and the officer assessment of risk as presented in the September version of the risk register:

b)    to note progress in the SWAP audit actions log and to recommend any extension to action 6’s target date to 31 March 2024:

c)    to approve the 2022/23 training plan set out in Appendix 6.