South West Region Police Pensions Board

What we do and who we are

The South West Region Police Pensions Board assists the scheme managers for Wiltshire, Devon & Cornwall, Dorset, Gloucestershire and Avon & Somerset Constabularies.

The chair of the Board is Ian Pollitt CBE (External, Independent Chair) and Deputy Chair is Neal Butterworth (Chief Finance Officer, Dorset Police).

Police Pension Board

The Pensions Regulator (TPR) oversees and regulates the governance and administration of public service pension schemes in the UK.

Public sector pension schemes must be governed and administered as public service pension schemes under the Public Service Pensions Acts (PSPA) from April 2015. Scheme managers and pension board members must comply with a number of legal requirements.

Each public service scheme has scheme regulations which set out details of the membership and benefits to be provided under the scheme. They also identify scheme manager, and provide for pension boards and scheme advisory boards to be established. The regulations form the scheme rules.

The Police Pension Scheme 2015 sets out the statutory arrangements both at a national and local level to comply with the new legislation and manage the old and new pension schemes.

The Police Advisory Board for England & Wales will serve as the national police pension scheme advisory board and take over from the Police Negotiating Board that ceased on 31 August 2014.

The Chief Constable is the ‘scheme manager’ of the Police Pension Fund for Devon and Cornwall Police and is required to manage and administer it - with the exception of their own pension. The Police and Crime Commissioner will be ‘scheme manager’ for matters relating to the Chief Constable’s pension as well as any deliberations/decisions on pension forfeiture.

The Pension Board is responsible for assisting the scheme manager in securing compliance with regulations and other matters. For purposes of efficiency 5 Forces in the South West Region, namely Dorset, Devon and Cornwall, Avon and Somerset, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire, have collaborated to utilize one Regional Pensions Board - with a common Independent Chair appointed. This arrangement is permitted under the Public Service Pensions Acts and TPR and has been adopted by other Forces in England and Wales. The Board includes wide representation from stakeholders.

The scheme administrator keeps records, collects contributions and pays benefits to members. Each Force will have their own arrangements – in all 5 Forces this function is fulfilled externally, by a third party under contract.

Further information is also available from the Pension Regulator.