Great to see so many mallowstreet members yesterday at the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) North Indaba yesterday. With the announcements from the Chancellor last week and subsequent publication of the consultation, the timing of our Indaba couldn’t have been better. This is precisely the moment when it is important to come together and discuss the key issues facing the industry. 

 

Adil Manzoor, Head of Private Markets, Merseyside Pension Fund, started the day with the following question: how will the Pension reforms recently announced by the Chancellor and the consultation issued by the Government impact LGPS going forward? It was great to hear his perspectives, as well as the perspectives of so many in attendance. We also touched on where infrastructure investments fit into impact and net zero strategies and discussed the impact of interest rate and inflation changes. 

Trevor Castledine, Mark Davies & Patrick O’Hara from LGPS then picked up the conversation and shared how LGPS Central’s investment strategies address climate and carbon targets through passive funds, and how the Pool’s offering aligns with its vision for achieving net-zero targets. In their talk they provided valuable insights into how passive funds can support sustainability goals and contribute to the broader dialogue on responsible investment practices. 

Max Townshend, Head of Investment Strategy LPPI, gave a thought-provoking talk that sparked a lot of conversation. Against a backdrop of increased government focus on the LGPSs supporting UK investment, Max explored how this aligns with schemes’ investment strategies and appetite for risk as funding levels have improved. He provided insight into how schemes and Pools are allocating risk when building their strategic asset allocation. 

In an excellent closing presentation, Mark Watts, Partner LCP, picked up on earlier conversations from the day. As the path to net zero is (mostly) set, and the energy transition is underway, Mark highlighted the changes the energy transition brings – as well as what to look for, what to avoid and how asset owners can swiftly and efficiently deploy assets to take advantage of the opportunities that this megatrend affords. 

 

Interspersed with these keynotes we had four world class asset managers presenting in the investment workshops: 

A huge thank you to everyone who joined us – and for braving the snow for what was a really excellent day in Manchester! It would be great to get your takeaways from the day in the comments below.