Independent Trustee

Select your next independent trustee

Your pension scheme needs an industrious individual who will:

• Fit in with your existing trustee board culture
• Maintain momentum between trustee meetings.
• Offer an impartial voice free from conflicts of interest.
• Act as a bridge between the employer and the trustee board
• Provide a stable, reassuring presence to create continuity during periods of transition or uncertainty.

A LawDeb independent trustee is a trusted intermediary between the client and the board, allowing your executive team to focus on the business, assured the pension scheme is under professional stewardship.

Our pension specialists act as independent trustees or trustee directors for the following types of pension schemes:

• All types of ongoing pension schemes, including
• defined benefit (DB),
• defined contribution (DC),
• hybrid DB/DC,
• open, closed and frozen
• Funded public sector and statutory body schemes
• Schemes being wound up
• Schemes in PPF assessment  
• Funded or secured Employer Financed Retirement Benefit Schemes (EFRBSs)
• Master trusts
• Governance committees of contract-based DC Arrangements

We can serve as a member of the trustee board, a member of the investment committee and other committees, and the chair of the trustee board and/or of committees.

Our responsibilities as independent professional trustees cover:

• Setting scheme strategy and objectives
• Pension scheme governance
• Investment strategy
• Selection and monitoring of professional advisers and service providers
• Communicating with members
• Liaising with employers
• Reporting certain matters to regulators and authorities

DB and DC Schemes

There are differences to the specific focus of a trustee board based on the scheme type.

A trustee of a DB scheme is tasked with delivering benefits to members by ensuring there is enough money to pay benefits as they fall due. This is managed by making sound investment decisions, engaging with the sponsor and monitoring the assets and liabilities of the scheme.

For a scheme offering DC benefits, the trustee’s responsibility relates more to member engagement and communications, with the aim being to help members to make informed decisions where they choose to, while ensuring suitable default policies are available.

A LawDeb trustee for a DC scheme will:

• Work with regulated advisors to assess the investment options available, ensure they are appropriate and provide a suitable default option for members who do not make their own choice
• Communicate effectively with members on key decision points for example, that what they get out is linked to what they put into the scheme
• Support members at all stages by providing information about their options and encouraging them to seek advice and/or guidance
• Assess whether the scheme provides value for members

How can we help?

Get in touch to discuss how an independent trustee add value to your pension scheme.

Contact us or go directly to one of our team, listed below.