North Yorkshire Council
Pension Board
Minutes of the meeting of the Pension Board held at County Hall, Northallerton on Thursday 23 October 2025 commencing at 10.00am.
Present: -
Members of the Board
David Portlock (Independent Chairman).
Employer Representatives:
Councillor Steve Watson (North Yorkshire Council),
Councillor Martin Rowley BEM (City of York Council)
Emma Barbery (Askham Bryan College)
Andrew Robinson (Ebor Academy Trust)
Scheme Members:
Eddie Brass (Deferred members)
David Houlgate (Unison retired/deferred members)
Simon Purcell (Unison)
Sam Thompson (Active members)
Council Officers:
Phillippa Cockerill, Jo Foster-Wade, Steve Loach, Tom Morrison and Stuart Cutts (Veritau).
In attendance:
Councillor George Jabbour (left the room during discussion of the confidential items).
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Copies of all documents considered are in the Minute Book
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130 |
Welcome and apologies for absence
The Chair welcomed Andrew Robinson of the Ebor Academy Trust to his first meeting of the Board since his appointment as an Employer Representative.
There were no apologies for absence.
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131 |
Exclusion of the Public and Press
Resolved –
That the public and press be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the Confidential Minutes of the Pension Fund Committee (PFC) held on 28 February 2025 and 25 September 2025 and the item relating to the Investment Pooling update, on the grounds that these include the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972 as amended by the Local Government (Access to information) (Variation) Order 2006.
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132a |
Minutes of the meeting held on 3 July 2025
Resolved –
That the Minutes of the meeting held on 3 July 2025, having been printed and circulated, be taken as read, confirmed as a correct record, and signed by the Chairman, subject to the following amendment:
Minute No.125 - Internal Audit Reports Paragraph 5 – final sentence
Replace “such an attack ever materialise” with “a successful attack be undertaken”.
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132b |
Progress on issues raised by the Board
The issue raised regarding the replacement of the North Yorkshire Pension Fund’s (NYPF) Responsible Investment Policy with that of Border to Coast Pensions Partnership (BCPP) on the NYPF website was considered. It was agreed that highlighting this change on the website was unnecessary. However, if the Board wished to pursue the matter further, additional representations could be made. The Member decided not to pursue this further.
There had been no progress made, as yet, in identifying a replacement Independent Observer and whether this position is required.
Resolved –
That the report be noted.
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133 |
Declarations of Interest
There were no declarations of interest.
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134 |
Public Questions and/or Statements
There were no public questions or statements.
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135 |
Minutes and Confidential Minutes of the Pension Fund Committee held on 28 February 2025 and feedback from the meeting held on 25 September 2025.
Members received the Minutes and Confidential Minutes of the PFC held on 28 February 2025 and the meeting held on 25 September 2025.
The Minutes and Confidential Minutes of the PFC held on 28 February 2025, which were not available for the previous meeting of the Board, were provided.
The Chair requested that his attendance be added to all the sets of minutes.
Resolved –
(i) That Minutes and Confidential Minutes of the PFC held on 28 Feedback 2025 and from the meeting held on 25 September 2025 be noted and the Chair of the Pension Board be added to the attendance.
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136 |
Draft Annual Report
Members were provided with a draft of the Annual Report of the Pension Board for 2024/25 and requested to outline any suggested amendments prior to its submission to Full Council in November.
Details of final amendments were provided and it was asked that the final version of the Annual Report, following those amendments, be delegated for clearance by the Chair and Clerk, for submission to Full Council.
It was agreed that the final version of the Annual Report, following suggested amendments, be delegated for clearance by the Chair and Clerk, for submission to Full Council
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137 |
Pension Fund Administration
The Head of Pensions Administration provided Members with an update on key initiatives undertaken by the administration team of the NYPF. The report included, as an Appendix, the report that was provided to the PFC at their September 2025 meeting.
The following issues were highlighted:-
PFC Report
The PFC report from 25 September 2025 meeting was provided as an Appendix.
Breaches Log
Three breaches had occurred since the previous meeting of the Board. The issuing of Annual Benefit Statements had not met the 100% required by the 31 August 2025, with 106 not having been issued prior to the deadline. Further details and an update would be provided later in this report. The other two breaches were data protection related with details sent to the wrong recipient. These issues had been reported to Veritau who had concluded that the matters were low risk and there was no need for these to be reported further. These issues were due to human error, rather than being systemic.
Annual Benefit Statements
Deferred member statements were all issued by the 30 June 2025. There were 106 Active member statements that had not been issued by the deadline of 31 August, hence the breach detailed above. As of the end of September this had been reduced to 64, and at the time of this meeting there were two waiting to be issued. Members noted that this was the best position that had been achieved for many years, and that, unless the Administration Team were satisfied that the data was fully correct they would not issue a statement. The Team were congratulated by Board Members for the hard work undertaken to achieve this position.
Triennial Valuation
The Valuation was progressing well with the Fund currently 119% funded. Initial discussions with some employers regarding draft contribution rates had already taken place. The Fund had carefully considered the level of prudence to apply in the valuation, and any surplus over 110% would be used to reduce contribution rates.
Each employer would have a four week consultation period when they received their draft contribution rates. In addition, the actuary would be presenting the whole of fund results at an online employer forum on 13 November. It was noted that around 40 employers had signed up to take part in the Forum and an Employer Representative on the Board agreed to further publicise the importance of attending this.
General Code of Practice
The NYPF was generally compliant with the new Code and a review would be undertaken to coincide with the Governance Review next year. Monitoring would continue to determine any anomalies in the interim.
McCloud
Data continued to be checked to rectify pensions in accordance with the ruling. Documentation was being developed ahead of benefits being paid. A number of issues had to be checked before the payment process could commence. It was noted that widows’ pensions would be taken account of within the process.
It was asked whether administration resources were particularly stretched given issues such as McCloud. It was emphasised that the Team were coping but issues such as McCloud did put pressure on achieving deadlines as resources were limited. Priorities i.e. paying pensions remained in place.
No guidance had been issued by the Local Government Association in relation to McCloud, therefore, the administration team were taking a pragmatic approach to how this was implemented. Action would be undertaken and reported back to the PFC and the Board in terms of how this was progressing. Any additional funding required for pensioners, due to McCloud, would automatically be paid.
Dashboard
This had now been completed and was waiting for the ‘switch on’ date of 31 October. A public connection date had yet to be announced. There was a chance that the system could be tested without the knowledge of the Fund as testing would be undertaken randomly. Any results from the testing would be fed back to the NYPF, which would be shared with the Board and PFC. Information on the use of the Dashboard would be provided via the NYPF website but there would be no direct communications with members.
LGPS Bulletins
Details of the bulletins were provided. Actions were undertaken where required.
Resolved –
(i) That the contents of the report be noted. (ii) That the contents of the Breaches Log be noted, and it be recommended to the PFC that no further action was required in respect of the breaches.
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138 |
Budget and cashflow
The Board received a report updating members on the Fund’s budget and costs for 2025/26, the latest cashflow forecast, and the 2024/25 Annual Report and Accounts.
The costs for Quarter 1 were broadly in line with the budget.
Details of the cashflow position of the Fund were set out in an appendix to the report for the current year and the two years going forward. Following recent disinvestments, the Fund currently held cash reserves well above the norm and this was expected to decrease during the year as investment opportunities were taken up. In relation to the negative cashflow position for the Fund’s operational activities, opportunities were available to obtain income from investments to assist, and the situation would continue to be monitored. In terms of the overall value of the Fund this predicted cashflow deficit was relatively minor.
It was noted that a typographical error had led to an anomaly with the figures provided within the report and this would be adjusted accordingly. There was a potential for the Valuation, and resulting contribution rates, to have a further impact on the cashflow position and the situation would continue to be monitored.
An update on the Fund’s and Annual Report and Accounts was provided. The draft Statement of Accounts for 2024/25, together with that of the Council, had been placed on the North Yorkshire Council (NYC) website in June 2025. Work was continuing on the audit of the Statement of Accounts and was expected to be completed before the backstop date of 27 February 2026. The sign off of the Accounts was the responsibility of the Audit Committee. Should the audited Accounts be unavailable by the 1 December publication deadline, then the draft of the Annual Report of the NYPF would be published on the NYPF website alongside a statement explaining that the accounts its status, and a final version would be published as soon as it was available. The main issues preventing the publication of the accounts lay with NYC rather than the NYPF, but the two sets of accounts had to be published together under current regulations.
A discussion took place on the possible separation of the accounts, so that LGPS Fund accounts would be published separately from the associated council accounts. This issue had been covered in the Fit for the Future consultation, so a change was considered possible. A change in legislation would be needed.
Resolved –
That the report and issues raised be noted.
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139 |
Internal Audit reports
The Assistant Director – Audit Assurance for Veritau provided a report updating members on the internal audit activity since the July 2025 meeting of the Board.
The planned audits for the first half of the year covering ICT controls and risk management had been undertaken, and the results of the IT Systems audit were provided for Members at this meeting.
Details of the issues considered were provided. Some aspects had identified aspects of work that did not necessarily comply with the Pension Regulator’s guidance, however, these had been discussed and addressed satisfactorily. It was noted that the scheduled follow up for 2026 meant early 2026. It was explained that should software need replacing then a procurement process would be undertaken rather than what the guidance of the Regulator suggested. Appropriate policies and procedures were followed in relation to this and were considered to be robust and strong. A separate policy was not required as the NYPF utilised the policy of NYC, the Administering Authority. The responsibility for replacing software was with the Administration Manager of the NYPF. It was noted that ‘hot back-ups’ for software were continually made to ensure that continuity of service remained in place and the NYPF could still operate. These took place both on and off-site.
Members congratulated officers for the ‘substantial assurance’ achieved in relation to the ICT controls and systems audit.
The Risk Management audit was well underway and a final report was expected to be submitted to the January meeting of the Board. A Member asked whether Pension Fraud had been included within the remit of that audit. It was stated that various aspects of risk to the Fund had been considered over a 2-3 month cycle. The Chair suggested that consideration of the final details of the report be discussed when this was submitted to the Board. It was stated that formal monitoring of cyber security was undertaken by the Board via their consideration of the Risk Register twice annually.
It was noted that the report referred to a Governing Body having to be regularly updated and it was asked to whom that referred. In response it was stated that the term Governing Body was in the General Code, which was why it was used in the audit, however in terms of the NYPF, this meant the Pension Board. The audit would be exploring various aspects of the role of the Governing Body (Pension Board) and Members were keen to see the final report at the January meeting.
Resolved –
That the report and issues raised be noted.
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140 |
Training
Members considered the report of the Assistant Chief Executive (Legal and Democratic Services) providing an update on Pension Board member training.
The Head of Investments for the NYPF stated that he would forward login details for the Hymans online training to the new Employer Representative, Andrew Robinson.
The Head of Investments for the NYPF stated that the results of the knowledge assessment would be fed back into the next meeting of the Board.
Resolved –
(i) That the Hymans Robertson online training package continue to be accessed by Members and reported back accordingly. (ii) That Members continue to provide details of any training they wish to be included on their training record. (iii) That further consideration be given to the knowledge assessment at the next meeting of the Board, with an action plan developed to address any gaps in knowledge and skills identified. (iv) That the report, and issues raised, be noted.
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141 |
Work Plan
Members considered the report of the Assistant Chief Executive (Legal and Democratic Services) detailing the areas of planned work of the Pension Board for the coming year and providing meeting dates for the Pension Board for 2025/26
It was noted that the work programme was flexible and could be adapted to take account of issues that were of particular interest to Members. Further adaptations to the work programme may be made following the publication of the Good Governance Review.
It was requested that the details of Meeting dates for 2026/27 be circulated as soon as they were available to assist Members with the management of their diaries.
Resolved –
(i) That the Work Plan, detailed in Appendix 1 to the report and as amended above, be noted.
(ii) That the dates of ordinary meetings for 2025/26, as detailed in the report be noted as follows:-
Thursdays at 10am
15th January 2026 2nd April 2026
That the dates for ordinary meetings for 2026/27 be circulated as soon as they are available.
(The following item contained exempt information and, therefore, was the subject of a separate, confidential minute)
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142 |
Investment Pooling Update
Members were provided with a report on changes to the arrangements with BCPP, following the “Fit for the Future” consultation and in anticipation of the Pension Schemes Bill which was expected to receive Royal Assent in 2026.
Resolved –
That the report be noted
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143 |
Other Urgent Business
Clerk to the Board
It was reported that the current Clerk to the Board, Steve Loach, would be retiring in January 2026, therefore, this would be his final meeting, with David Smith, present at this meeting, taking over the role as Clerk. The Board gave their thanks to Steve for his support over the years.
Resolved –
That this be noted.
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The meeting concluded at 11.40 am.