May 2022

Pensions Annual Return 2021/22

Thank you to everyone who submitted their Annual Return data to us, your prompt delivery has been much appreciated in this very busy Valuation year. Your data has been reconciled to our pension records and this will ensure that accurate information for your members will be sent to the Actuary in June.

It is vital that we hold the correct membership for each Fund employer so that the Actuary can accurately assess each liability and deliver the Employer contribution rate that reflects this.

The deadline for the Annual Return was 14^th April, so if you have not yet submitted your Return please ensure this is sent to our shared mailbox by the end of this week: pensionsannualreturns-mailbox@devon.gov.uk

If you have any questions or concerns please email Jane Aplin (jane.j.aplin@devon.gov.uk)

Employer focus sessions

Our next topic is Pensionable Pay and will include why, where and when we need it along with how to calculate Full-Time equivalent (FTE) pensionable pay. The session will be held on Tuesday 5th July 2022. Due to the difference in how we record term-time, there will be one session for Devon Fund employers and a separate one for Somerset fund employers  

Please register your interest by submitting the relevant form:

Devon Fund Employers

Somerset Fund Employers

We look forward to seeing you there.

Employer Discretions Policy

As mentioned in April’s edition, please take time to review your employer discretion policy. Some things to consider: 

• Is it still fit for purpose?
• Is it affordable?
• Have you included all employer discretions - mandatory and non-mandatory as recommended?

Our website includes full guidance and an example template to help you formulate and review your discretions in line with the regulations. Following the review please send a copy of your current or updated policy to the Employer & Communications team. 

Payment of Invoices for the Devon Pension Fund

Please could we ask that any invoices received are paid promptly and to the correct account – please see our website on how to Make a payment to the Devon Pension Fund. If you have any questions or need additional information, please contact michelle.jackson@devon.gov.uk or jane.richardson@devon.gov.uk.

Pension Administration Reminders:

Annual Allowance 2021/22 - Please remember to provide your scheme members information for the required annual allowance exercise by 5^th July 2022. Please revisit the April edition of the Pensions Line for more information.

Alternative Leaver form - Do you receive work activities stating the ESS leaver form is blank? If so, there is an alternative leaver process for employers who do not currently download and re-upload the leaver form on the same day. A template form is available for you to complete and arrange for checking/sign off ahead of uploading to ESS. Then when the leaver form is ready to be made live on ESS, the alternative leaver form is created so that you can copy and paste the details from the template to the ESS version. If you think this process might work better for you, please contact Emma Davies who will provide more details. 

Keep us updated with any changes in staff responsible for completing our forms and submitting pension data (authorised signatories) via our online form.

If you are changing your Payroll Provider, please contact the Employer & Communications Team so that we can help you through the process and make sure you retain access to historical payroll information.

Payment of Pension Fund Contributions - please remember to inform us and the relevant Finance team each time you have paid your pension scheme contributions, by filling in the Monthly Contributions Form.

TUPEs & New Academies – please do not submit any leavers forms if you are outsourcing services and have a number of staff who will be subject to TUPE or your school is converting to an Academy or moving Trusts. Instead, you will need to follow the process on our website.

Useful Links

Peninsula Pensions Employers' Pages

LGPS regulations and guidance

Fund Investments

LGPS National Website

Employer & Communications Team Mailbox

Previous editions of Pensions Line

Peninsula Pensions
Great Moor House
Bittern Road
Sowton Industrial Estate
Exeter EX2 7NL
Tel: 01392 383000
Peninsula Pensions is provided by Devon County Council and is a shared service with Somerset County Council