Newham Council has approved updates to the Pension Board's Terms of Reference, aiming to enhance member representation and streamline administrative processes. These changes come as the board faces potential challenges in maintaining a quorum due to difficulties in securing Trade Union nominations.
The Pensions Committee convened on 9 July 2025, to discuss and approve several key changes to the pension fund's governance and administration. A primary focus was the updated Terms of Reference for the Pension Board, designed to ensure fair and transparent recruitment of member representatives.
One of the key proposed changes to the Terms of Reference involves the process for appointing member representatives to the Pension Board. The updated terms allow for a fair and transparent recruitment campaign open to all members of the fund
should Trade Union nominations no longer be possible. This change aims to broaden the pool of potential representatives and ensure the board maintains a minimum of three voting members to meet quorum requirements. This is particularly important because, as of 1 August 2025, the board will consist of only two employer representatives and one member representative, meaning a single absence would prevent future meetings from reaching a quorum.
The need for this change arises due to the recent difficulty in the three main Trade Unions in Newham to put forward nomination for the remaining vacancy to the board...
The updated terms aim to address this challenge by ensuring a broader pool of candidates can be considered. The recruitment campaign will be open to all members of the fund.
The committee was asked to approve the proposed updated terms in advance of the absolute final position on Trade Union availability due to the current member representation moving to 1 with effect from 1st August 2025, therefore should no further nomination from a Trade Union be supplied officers will have time to carry out the relevant actions to appoint a member representative prior to the next Board meeting in October 2025.
In addition to the Terms of Reference, the committee also approved an updated Pensions Administration Strategy (PAS) and Charging Policy. The PAS outlines changes to how employers must submit member data to the Local Pensions Partnership Administration (LPPA). Specifically, the Pensions Administration Strategy (PAS) has been updated to cover changes made to the way, and the frequency, with which our employers need to pass member data to our pension's administrators, LPPA. The Charging Policy details how the council will charge employers additional fees for issues such as late data submission.
Employers were recently consulted on these documents, with a deadline of 30 June for responses. No comments or concerns were received.
Appendix 2 Terms of Reference and Newham Local Pensions Board update July 2025 and Appendix 3 Newham Pension Fund PAS are available online.