Here is a summary of the scheduled discussions for the ACCESS Joint Committee meeting on 16 June 2025. The meeting was scheduled to cover the election of a chair and vice-chair, updates to the business plan and budget, and risk management. A significant portion of the meeting was expected to be held in private, excluding the press and public, to discuss exempt items including Project Castle, alternative assets and investment performance.

Business Plan, Budget and Risk Summary

The committee was scheduled to review the Business Plan, Budget & Risk Summary report, which provides an update on activities, associated spending, and risk management since the last meeting.

The report included a summary of the 2024/25 business plan, noting key activities such as the Third-Party Review, the re-procurement for the pool's ACS Operator, and the government's Pension Review. The report also detailed the status of milestones across various themes, including actively managed listed assets, alternative/non-listed assets, and passively managed assets.

The committee was also scheduled to note the 2024/25 financial outturn, which showed an overspend of £209,179, mainly due to pressures on external professional costs. However, there was an underspend of £55,000 due to fewer procurements taking place than initially planned within the non-listed theme of the business plan.

The 2025/26 Business Plan update was also up for discussion, with a focus on the implications of the Minister's written response to ACCESS Authorities on 9 April 2025, and the ongoing Project Castle work¹. Officers were reviewing the 2025/26 Business Plan in light of the Project Castle work, and further updates were expected at the September meeting.

The committee was scheduled to discuss the 2025/26 budget totalling £13,309,633, and consider a different cost-sharing arrangement. A review of the 2025/26 budget was necessary, including considerations around cost-sharing, and these matters were expected to be brought to the next meeting in September.

Finally, the committee was scheduled to note the risk summary.

Exclusion of Press and Public

A motion was proposed to exclude the press and public from the meeting for specific business items. This proposal was based on Section 100A of the Local Government Act 1972, which allows for the exclusion of the press and public when the discussion involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraphs 3 & 5 of part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act. The exempt items included:

• Exempt Minutes of the meeting held on 24 March 2025
• Project Castle
• Alternative Assets
• Investment Performance (to follow)
• Risk Register

Other Business

The agenda also included:

• Election of Chair
• Election of Vice-Chair
• Apologies/Substitutes
• Declaration of interests in items on the agenda
• Minutes of the meeting held on 24 March 2025
• Chair's Remarks