Agenda and minutes

There were no declarations of interest on this occasion.

RESOLVED – That the minutes of the Meeting of the Pensions Panel held on 9 March 2016 be confirmed and signed by the Chairman.

The Director of Finance and Resources submitted a summary of the performance of the Pension Fund for 2015/16 together with a portfolio of the Fund’s investments as at 31 March 2016.

The Panel were informed that the Fund had a market value of £3.72 billion at 31 March 2016.  The Fund returned 1.8% over the quarter, marginally underperforming its benchmark of 2.0%. The best performing asset class relative to benchmark was bonds, with a return of 3.7%, followed by equities at 1.6%, property at 1.4% and the Fund’s alternative investments at 0.3%. The Fund’s underperformance this quarter was generated from the Fund’s equity portfolios with several of the Fund’s investment managers struggling as a result of the volatile markets. 

Whilst the 2015/16 financial year saw the Fund marginally below its benchmark return, over the longer term the Fund continued to outperform its strategic benchmark return and had generated absolute returns of 7.2% and 7.9% per annum in the 3 and 5 year time periods respectively. These were ahead of the long term return assumptions used by the Actuary in his last valuation of the Fund. 

RESOLVED – That the Pension Fund Investment performance for 2015/16 and the portfolio of investments for the quarter ended 31 March 2016 be noted.

19 July 2016

8 September 2016

6 December 2016

7 March 2017

All meetings are scheduled to start at 9.30am at County Buildings, Stafford unless indicated otherwise.

•  19 July 2016 (Managers’ Day)
• 8 September 2016
• 6 December 2016
• 7 March 2017

All meetings are scheduled to start at 9.30am at County Buildings, Stafford.

RESOLVED - That the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business which involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in the paragraph of Part One of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended) indicated below.

The Panel then proceeded to consider reports on the following issues:

(Exemption paragraph 3)

(Exemption paragraph 3)

(Exemption paragraph 3)

Oral update by the Director of Finance and Resources

(Exemption paragraph 3)

(Exemption paragraph 3)

(Exemption paragraph 3)

Report of the Director of Finance and Resources

(Exemption paragraph 3)

(Report of Portfolio Evaluation for the quarter ended 31 March 2016 enclosed for information)

(Exemption paragraph 3)

(Exemption paragraph 3)

Report of the Director of Finance and Resources

(Exemption paragraph 3)

(Exemption paragraph 3)

Training and presentation by Hymans Robertson

(Exemption paragraph 3)

(Exemption paragraph 3)

(Exemption paragraph 3)

Report of Colliers International

Report of the Director of Finance and Resources