3. Governance
Bath & North East Somerset (B&NES) Council delegates its responsibility for administering the Fund to the Avon Pension Fund Committee. The Committee meets quarterly and is the Fund’s formal decision-making body. Employers are widely represented within the Committee membership, as well as scheme member representatives and three independent members.
All LGPS funds are required to have a local pension board. The Pension Board is made up of member and employer representatives and they have an advisory role in assisting the Fund by making recommendations about compliance, process, and governance. The Pension Board helps to support the effective and efficient governance of the scheme by ensuring adherence to relevant legislation and compliance with The Pensions Regulator requirements. The Committee and Board receive quarterly reports on the Fund and employer administrative processes and performance. This is supplemented with compliance information required by The Pensions Regulator regarding data.
The Committee and Board review these summary results and act where appropriate. Reports on performance are available to the public via the Pension Board and Pension Committee meeting minutes.
The Committee regularly reviews all administrative targets and service delivery costs. These reviews continue to inform future changes to the Administration Strategy.
Detailed roles and responsibilities of both the Pensions Committee and Local Pension Board as well as the terms of reference can be found on our website.
The Fund’s governance arrangements are in line with The Pension Regulator’s expectations as set out in its General Code of Practice.
The Fund has conducted a gap analysis and has an action plan in place to meet full compliance.