This meeting of the Pension Fund Investment & Administration Panel included a review of the draft Pension Fund accounts for the nine months to 31 December 2024 and the draft business plan for 2025/26. It also included a discussion of the risk register, recent progress, and the investment manager performance for the last quarter.

Financial Reporting Council (FRC) UK Stewardship Code Report 2024

The Panel were asked to agree the Royal Borough of Greenwich Pension Fund Stewardship Report 2024 and re-apply to become a signatory to the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) UK Stewardship Code, a voluntary code that sets out high stewardship standards for asset owners, including pension schemes. The FRC is the UK’s independent regulator of corporate governance and financial reporting.

The report details the policies and procedures the Fund has in place to integrate environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues into its stewardship activities.

The deadline for the FRC application was 31 May 2025 and the Panel, as the Fund’s governing body, had to approve the report before submission.

Pension Fund Risk Register

The Panel were asked to agree the updated Pension Fund risk register. The register was split into four sections: Administrative; Compliance and Regulatory; Employer; Investment; Liability; Other; Reputational; and Skill. Each section of the register had been reviewed quarterly by a responsible officer, and the whole register was formally reviewed by the Panel annually. The accompanying report highlights one key risk:

Cyber Security Risk could have a large organisational impact.

Progress Update Report

The Panel was asked to note the progress made since the Panel meeting on 9 December 2024.

At the previous meeting, the Panel agreed to explore the proximity, exposure, and investment in companies involved in or associated with, or whose activities facilitate, human rights abuses, as well as companies operating in areas considered occupied territories under international law. The accompanying report states that:

The Fund has assessed its exposure to companies flagged by the United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner’s (“OHCHR”) A/HRC/37/39 Report , which identified grounds to conclude that certain companies' activities may enable and support the establishment, expansion, and maintenance of Israeli residential communities within Palestinian territories.

The report pack goes on to say that the assessment had found that the Fund's exposure to these companies was 0.16% of the total Fund value.

The report also proposes a timeline for the review of the Responsible Investment Policy.

Draft Pension Fund accounts as at 31 December 2024

The Panel was asked to note the draft Pension Fund accounts for the nine months ending 31 December 2024. The accounts showed an increase in fund value of 3.26% since 31 March 2024. This took the total value of the fund to £1.746bn.

Draft Business Plan 2025/26

The Panel was asked to note and comment on the draft Pension Fund Business Plan for 2025/26. The report stated that the final business plan would be reviewed and presented at the July 2025 meeting and would include an assessment of the 2024/25 business plan.

Fund Manager Performance to 31 December 2024

The Panel was asked to note the performance of the investment managers for the period to 31 December 2024. The accompanying report showed an overall reduction in fund value of £4m to £1,696m over the last quarter. This was despite positive investment returns over the period, because the diversified alternative investment with Partners Group distributed £11m to the Fund.

The report pack describes the performance of each of the Funds investments. The best performing were:

• The LGIM Low Carbon Future World fund, which delivered a return of 5.8%.
• The Blackrock Global Fund, which returned 3.0%.
• Partners Group, which delivered a return of 4.9% over the quarter.

The worst performing investments were:

• The LCIV Absolute Return Fund, which delivered a return of -3.1%.
• Fidelity’s UK Aggregate Bond fund, which returned -2.2%.
• Fidelity’s Multi-Asset Credit fund, which delivered a return of -0.9%.

Overall the total assets, excluding the private equity investment with Wilshire, delivered a return of 1.0% over the quarter and 7.7% over the year to 31 December 2024.

The report pack also included a confidential appendix that contained further details of the performance of the fund managers.