National Association of Pension Funds

National Association of Pension Funds
Name	National Association of Pension Funds
Abbreviation	NAPF
Formation	1923
Type	Trade association
Headquarters	London
Region	United Kingdom
Membership	Pension schemes, trustees, employers

Contents

History

The association originated in the early 20th century alongside developments such as the Old Age Pensions Act 1908, the growth of Royal Mail staff schemes and corporate pensions for firms like BP, Royal Dutch Shell, British Steel. In the interwar and postwar eras it engaged with debates around the Beveridge Report, National Insurance Act 1946, Dockworkers' strike 1947 and the expansion of occupational schemes for employees of British Leyland, Rolls-Royce Limited and London Transport. During the 1980s and 1990s it adapted to regulatory change prompted by events including the Woolwich Equitable Building Society decisions, the reform program of Margaret Thatcher cabinet ministers like Nigel Lawson and the privatisations of British Telecom, British Gas and British Airways. The association contributed to responses to the Pension Protection Fund creation, the aftermath of the Maxwell pension scandal and high-profile corporate failures such as RBS and Carillion that triggered scrutiny of trustee practices. It has also worked alongside trade unions including Unite the Union and Unison and professional bodies like Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.

Members include trustee boards from large schemes such as Universities Superannuation Scheme, Railways Pension Scheme, BT Pension Scheme, National Grid UK Pension Scheme and corporate schemes for firms including Tesco, Sainsbury's, HSBC, Barclays and Lloyds Banking Group. Institutional members encompass asset managers like BlackRock, Legal & General Investment Management, Schroders, Vanguard and Aberdeen Standard Investments, as well as advisory firms such as Mercer, Willis Towers Watson and Aon. The association interfaces with professional trustees from Institute of Chartered Accountants in Scotland, Pension Management Institute and Fiduciary Management. Its governance structure mirrors other trade associations like British Medical Association and Law Society of England and Wales, with regional links to devolved administrations including Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive.

Activities include member services similar to those of CIPD branches: guidance on trustee duties, scheme funding, risk management, investment stewardship, and defined contribution design. It provides training akin to courses run by Institute and Faculty of Actuaries and collaborates on industry standards with Association of Consulting Actuaries and Financial Reporting Council. The association runs events reflecting formats used by City of London Corporation and London Stock Exchange Group, hosts conferences featuring speakers from Bank of England, Office for National Statistics, Pension Protection Fund, Royal Society and engages in stewardship dialogues with ShareAction, Occupational Pensions Governance Authority and international counterparts such as Australian Prudential Regulation Authority and U.S. Department of Labor.

The association is overseen by a board composed of trustees, employer representatives and professional members drawn from organisations like BT Group, British Airways Pension Trustees Limited, National Grid, Sainsbury's Superannuation Fund and investment firms such as BlackRock and Legal & General Group plc. Senior executives liaise with regulatory chairs such as those at Financial Conduct Authority and The Pensions Regulator and with ministers including members of Prime Minister's Office and Chancellor of the Exchequer. Past chairs and chief executives have had profiles comparable to leaders of Association of British Insurers, Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy.

The association publishes positions on issues spanning auto-enrolment implementation under Pensions Act 2008, defined benefit covenant assessments following cases like British Steel Pension Scheme crisis, stewardship under the UK Stewardship Code, climate risk disclosure aligned with Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures, fiduciary duty debates influenced by rulings of European Court of Justice and Supreme Court of the United Kingdom. It engages in consultations on tax changes linked to Finance Act measures, interacts with Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development on international tax and pension frameworks, and campaigns on member priorities reminiscent of lobbying by Confederation of British Industry and Federation of Small Businesses.

The association issues guides, briefing notes and research reports on scheme funding, investment, governance and longevity, akin to publications by Institute and Faculty of Actuaries, Office for National Statistics mortality studies, and Pension Protection Fund analysis. It commissions work from consultancies such as Mercer, Willis Towers Watson and academic partners from institutions including London School of Economics, University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, Imperial College London, University College London and University of Edinburgh. Regular outputs include benchmarking surveys, policy briefings, trustee toolkits and event proceedings used by practitioners across schemes like Railways Pension Scheme, Universities Superannuation Scheme and corporate funds at Tesco and Barclays.

Category:Trade unions and professional associations of the United Kingdom