Pension Fundamentals training course programme 2025

This is a draft programme and is subject to change. 

Day one

Duties and responsibilities of Pension Committees and Boards

• The legislative framework
• Governance arrangements
• Oversight bodies

Benefit structure

• The basis of the LGPS
• Final salary v CARE schemes
• A tour of the 2014 scheme

The legal landscape

• LGPS specific duties and responsibilities
• Common problem areas
• What happens when things go wrong?

The road ahead

• Future changes to LGPS benefit regulations
• How LGPS governance might look in the future
• A brief overview of investment reforms 

Day two

Tomorrow’s LGPS: from reform to reality

• How the Government’s reforms will impact the investment landscape

Investment basics

• The different types of investment classes and how they work

The pooling journey

• How pooling has evolved
• Roles and responsibilities

Valuations

• The purpose of an actuarial valuation
• Assets and liabilities
• The assumptions used

Funding

• The importance of a funding strategy
• Different employers – different characteristics and objectives
• Communicating with employers and employer covenants 

Day three

Unpacking the fiduciary duty

• How the duty applies
• Considering non-financial factors
• Responding to lobbying

A view from the bridge

• The role of the responsible government department
• The Government’s priorities

Meeting the Pension Regulator’s expectations

• Monitoring performance on key processes
• Reporting breaches
• Data management
• Pensions dashboards

Pensions dashboards

• How dashboards will change how people feel about retirement

Cyber security

• Assessing and understanding the risk
• Your role
• Case study

Embracing AI in the LGPS

• Opportunity vs risk
• People and workforce development
• The importance of data and how technology can help improve data quality
• Examples of how AI/Automation/technologies are being implemented at West Midlands Pension Fund (WMPF)