Pensions dashboard readiness and endgame planning are the leading challenges facing defined benefit (DB) pension scheme trustees over the next 12 months, according to new research from TPT Retirement Solutions (“TPT”), as trustees contend with a growing set of operational, governance, investment and strategic priorities.
The findings have been published in the first Insight Report from the TPT Retirement Solutions: DB Trustee Pulse 2026, a new series based on an independent survey of 100 UK DB pension trustees representing schemes with assets ranging in size from £100m to over £10bn+.
Pensions dashboard readiness topped the trustee agenda, cited by 38% of respondents. Evaluating endgame options ranked second and was the fast-rising priority, with 31% of trustees citing it as a major challenge, compared with 16% in 2024. Other priorities followed closely including liquidity, collateral and cashflow management (30%), staying on top of member communications and expectations (28%), and navigating market volatility / investment performance (26%), all of which ranked similarly high (see Figure One).
Taken together, the findings point to a broader capacity issue. Trustees are no longer contending with a single overriding challenge. Rather, they are having to deal with an increasingly crowded agenda that requires them to progress long-term strategic decisions while simultaneously meeting an ever-expanding range of operational and governance demands.
Compared with TPT’s 2024 DB Trustee Pulse Survey, some previously prominent challenges have eased. Notably, concerns around accessing different asset classes fell from 29% to 24%, while concerns over data quality declined from 21% to 16%, suggesting progress has been made in areas that previously required greater trustee attention.
Differently sized schemes experiencing different pressures
The research also reveals that the types of challenges faced by trustees differ by scheme size. Analysis shows that schemes with less than £1bn in assets under management are more likely to flag endgame options as a challenge, cited by 42% of trustees in this category. Smaller-scheme trustees also show a greater concern around running costs, cited by 30%, and staffing capacity, cited by 26%.
However, for medium-to-large sized schemes with £1bn or more in assets under management, pensions dashboard readiness is the most prominent challenge, selected by 39% of trustees in this category, followed by liquidity, collateral or cashflow management needs at 33%. Scheme administration, keeping pace with regulation and asset allocation all rank close behind, each cited by 26% of trustees in this group.
Nicholas Clapp, Commercial Director, TPT Retirement Solutions, said: “For a number of years, the industry conversation was dominated by funding, de-risking and endgame planning. Those priorities have not gone away, but there is now greater recognition of the growing practical realities trustees face in overseeing a pension scheme. Dashboards, governance, data, administration and implementation projects all compete for the same time and resource.”
Katherine Lynas, Head of Consultant Relations, TPT Retirement Solutions, said: “What we are seeing is that operational complexity is becoming a strategic issue. Trustees are evaluating endgame options while also thinking about how much governance, resource and ongoing management each route requires. That's why consolidation options that provide scale and simplicity are becoming increasingly important considerations.”
|
