The Assistant Director - Pensions presented the report.

The Chair asked for further information on the Supplemental Pension Increase referenced in section 5.5. and also queried the age of the backlog and planned timescales for clearing the backlog of work.

The Assistant Director - Pensions explained that the Supplemental Pension Increase affected the calculations needed to accurately award pensions to deferred Scheme Members and that the complexity of these calculations and the high number of Scheme Members affected contributed to a significant backlog of work. The Director added that further data was needed to process the Supplemental Pensions Increase data and to explore whether clearing this backlog could be automated for efficiency.

The Assistant Director - Pensions communicated that clearing the backlog was in progress and that setting targets for timescales was part of the ongoing monitoring that was now being tracked. The Assistant Director - Pensions acknowledged the significant age of some of the outstanding work and explained that this was down to queries to employers which have received no response or have not been actioned; these queries were now being targeted with officers using existing data and evidence to manually resolve them.

Members commented on the role of employers in preventing the clearing of the back log and that prompt and accurate information from them was crucial in improving performance. It was also posited that employers were not always made aware of issues and that better communication between SYPA and employers would prevent enquiries stalling and creating a backlog.

The Assistant Director - Pensions responded that the new Employer Engagement Team was formed to improve communications and relations between SYPA and employers to minimise the amount and the age of any outstanding work going forward and improve overall Scheme Member experience. It was stated that work was ongoing to update the efficacy with how problems and queries were communicated between employers and SYPA and how responses and resolutions were tracked and reported.

Members asked for a timescale for the implementation of dashboards once an ISP had been appointed.

The Assistant Director - Pensions stated that internal plans for implementation were being drafted and could be actioned once an ISP provider had been appointed. The timeline depended on the consultation period needed to find the optimum provider with the idea that one be appointed by the end of Summer 2024 if a suitable candidate was found. The Assistant Director - Pensions stated that the Local Pension Board would not be involved in the consultation but that the outcome and reasoning of any decision would be presented to the Board before implementation if practicable.

The Assistant Director - Pensions also suggested the scheduling of a presentation to the Board on the functionality of the proposed dashboards and how they aim to increase and improve Scheme Member engagement online.

RESOLVED: Members accepted the report and indicated the areas where they would like to receive further details.