The Pensions Fund Committee of West Northamptonshire Council met on Monday 21 July 2025, to discuss the external audit plan, the draft statement of accounts, and updates to the business plan activities. The committee was also scheduled to review the annual investment strategy and the performance of investment consultancy providers.

External Audit Plan

The committee was scheduled to review the external audit plan for the Northamptonshire Pension Fund for the year ending 31 March 2025, prepared by Grant Thornton (GT). According to the Agenda Item 06 report, Grant Thornton, as the fund's external auditor, identified key risks including the valuation of Level 3 investments¹ and the potential for management override of controls.

The audit approach to these risks, as detailed in the Northamptonshire Pension Fund Audit Plan Year Ended 31 March 2025, included:

• Evaluate the design and implementation of management controls over journals

• Analyse the journals listing and determine the criteria for selecting high risk unusual journals

• Identify and test unusual journals made during the year and the accounts production stage for appropriateness and corroboration

• Gain an understanding of the accounting estimates and critical judgements applied by management and considered their reasonableness.

The audit plan noted that the planning materiality for the financial statements was set at £68.25 million, representing 1.89% of gross investment assets as of 31 March 2024. The planning materiality for the fund account was £14.66 million, or 10% of the prior year's gross expenditure. The total audit fees for the year were estimated to be £136,134, excluding fees for IAS 19 letters² for employer body auditors.

Draft Statement of Accounts 2024-25

The committee was scheduled to review the draft statement of accounts for the pension fund for the 2024-25 financial year. According to the Agenda Item 07 report, the fund's assets had risen to £3,738.4 million, reflecting positive investment performance during the year, with a net increase of £119.5 million.

Key changes highlighted in the Northamptonshire Pension Fund Draft Statement of Accounts 2024-25 included:

• Increased contribution receipts from £136.4 million to £150.1 million.
• Increased benefit payments from £117.9 million to £132.6 million.
• Increased administration expenses from £2.4 million to £3 million, mainly due to a decrease in bank interest received.
• Increased oversight and governance costs from £1 million to £1.3 million, mainly due to additional investment consultancy work.
• Increased investment management fees from £11.9 million to £16.5 million, primarily driven by transaction costs related to changes in asset holdings.
• Investment income increased from £36.9m to £61.1m as a result of changes in asset holdings, in line with the Investment Strategy.

The Fund's investment return was reported at 3.2% net of fees, resulting in a net market gain of £127.6 million.

Update to Business Plan Activities

The committee was scheduled to receive an update on the fund's business plan activities. According to the Agenda Item 10 report, the updates included:

• McCloud Remedy Rectification: Due to challenges in completing all remedial work by the regulatory deadline of 31 August 2025, a determination was to be considered to extend the implementation phase for certain qualifying members to 31 August 2026.
• Rectify Survivor Benefit Cases: Following the release of the LGPS Access and Fairness consultation, the scope of this activity was updated to cover the wider range of proposals contained within the consultation.
• Support the Build of the ACCESS FCA-Regulated Entity: Following the government's response to the Fit for the Future consultation, this activity was to be re-profiled as the initial build activity is no longer a viable option. Instead, the fund will need to join another LGPS asset pool.
• Processing of Undecided Leaver Records: A proposal to outsource a proportion of the unprocessed leaver cases to Hymans Robertson, was to be discussed, to address competing statutory requirements and maximise record accuracy in preparation for Pension Dashboards³.

The Agenda Item 10 Appendix A McCloud Determination NPF report noted that while new final underpin dates and deaths from 1 October 2023 were compliant, cases falling under part 3 of the 2023 regulations were not fully compliant, with a proposed resolution date of 31 March 2026.

Forward Agenda Plan

The committee was also scheduled to review the Northamptonshire Pension Fund Committee Forward Agenda Plan, which outlines the agenda items for future meetings.