The Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Fire and Rescue Service Local Pension Board is scheduled to convene on Tuesday, 27 January 2026. The meeting's agenda includes a comprehensive business update covering membership movements, pension scheme bulletins, risk and breaches logs, and financial updates. A significant portion of the discussion is expected to focus on the ongoing complexities and remedies related to age discrimination in pension schemes, specifically the McCloud/Sargeant and Matthews cases, as well as issues surrounding secondary contracts for firefighters.

Business Update

The primary item on the agenda is a detailed business update, which will cover a range of operational and administrative matters concerning the Firefighters' Pension Schemes. This update is intended to assist Board members in fulfilling their governance responsibilities under the Public Service Pensions Act 2013¹.

The report pack indicates that the update will include:

• Membership Movements: An overview of changes in membership numbers within the pension schemes for Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Fire and Rescue Services as of 31 December 2025. This includes statistics for active, deferred, and pensioner members across the 1992, 2006, and 2015 Firefighters' Pension Schemes.
• LGA FPS Bulletins: A review of bulletins issued by the Local Government Association (LGA) concerning Firefighters' Pension Schemes during the previous quarter. Actions arising from these bulletins for scheme managers, administrators, and local pension boards will be highlighted.
• Firefighters' Pension Schemes Risk Register: An update on the existing risk register, with specific mention of additional information being added to risks concerning the move to an externally hosted cloud-based solution for pension software and the transition to monthly collection of active membership data. Risk 23, relating to the Pensions Dashboards Programme, is noted for removal from the register after this meeting.
• Firefighters' Pension Schemes Breaches Log: Information on any identified breaches of pension regulations. The report notes a breach concerning the late production and distribution of Annual Benefit Statements (ABS) for 2025, which were affected by the Age Discrimination Remedy. This breach has been reported to The Pensions Regulator.
• Firefighters' Pension Schemes Complaints Log: Details of any complaints received from scheme members. The report highlights two recent complaints from ex-retained firefighters concerning delays in receiving their offer packages or recalculations related to the Matthews Second Options exercise.
• Internal Disputes Resolution Procedure (IDRP) Appeals: An update on any ongoing appeals being processed through the IDRP. Two new appeals are noted: one concerning an ex-firefighter's eligibility for the Matthews Second Options Exercise, and another related to a firefighter's secondary contract issue.
• CFRS Finance Update: Financial information pertaining to the Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service (CFRS). This includes details on Age Discrimination Remedy Pensions Compensation Payments and the completion of Home Office Pensions account forecasting.
• Age Discrimination Remedy (McCloud/Sargeant): A detailed explanation of the remedy implemented to address age discrimination in the Firefighters' Pension Schemes, following legal challenges. The report outlines the changes to future and past discrimination, the requirements for Annual Benefit Statements/Remediable Service Statements (ABS/RSS), and the implications for pensioner members.
• Matthews Second Options Exercise: An update on the exercise allowing eligible retained firefighters to purchase pension entitlement as a special member of the Firefighters' Pension Scheme 2006. The report details the background to the exercise, the recent government response to a consultation on proposed changes, and the progress made, including an extension to the deadline.
• Secondary Contracts: An examination of an issue identified with the administration of contracts for some Wholetime firefighters who have undertaken On Call duties under a secondary contract. The report discusses the potential implications if these are treated as a single contract of employment and the work being undertaken to rectify records and apply appropriate remedies.
• Pensions Dashboards Programme (PDP): An update on the progress of connecting to the Pensions Dashboards ecosystem, a requirement for all pension schemes. The report notes that the Cornwall Pension Fund connected to the ecosystem ahead of the deadline.
• Collection of Membership Data: Information on the implementation of a new data portal, i-Connect, for the automated submission of pension data from employers to the Fund, aiming to improve accuracy and efficiency.

The report pack also includes appendices detailing the Risk Register (Appendix 2), Breaches Log (Appendix 3), and a progress report on the Matthews Second Options Exercise (Appendix 4).