13:00 - 19:00

Registration open

14:00 - 17:45

Pre- conference events. Please note pre-registration is essential

14:00 - 15:00

Learning Zone - session 1 Sponsored by KPMG
Governance - making the most of risk based governance and assurance
Is it time to re-evaluate your approach to risk? It is time to get back to business fundamentals, including risk governance and assurance. Risk management should take a strategic role and be at the heart of business and decision making.
Participate in this workshop to improve your governance and enhance your control environment. Work through a case study using a state of the art risk and governance tool.
Kevin Clark, KPMG
Graham Jung, KPMG

15:00 - 15:30

Refreshment break

15:30 - 16:30

Learning Zone - session 2 Sponsored by State Street Global Advisors
Liability Driven Investing - targeting pension schemes' funding volatility
An intelligently modelled LDI solution can make better use of a pension scheme's assets to offset movements in its liabilities and reduce the overall funding level volatility. Astute use of leverage can also enable schemes to supplement their allocation to growth assets.
This workshop will feature insightful case studies and review how a structured LDI solution would have benefited a typical LGPS Scheme's funding ratio in light of market performance over the past 5 years.
Raymond Haines, State Street Global Advisors

16:30 - 16:45

Refreshment break

16:45 - 17:45

Fringe meeting sponsored by Pramerica Real Estate Investors
Not just bricks and mortar - Alternative UK property investments
Many UK pension funds have historically made allocation to property which gave them exposure to a balanced spread of diversified types of property (offices, retail, industrial).  Normally their investment has been a 100% equity stake in each property, whether held directly, or through a pooled vehicle.
With fixed income yields at record lows and with investors looking for investments which match their pension liabilities, this session will look at some of the new and evolving investment strategies in the UK.
Mathew Crowther, Pramerica Real Estate Investors
Paul Dennis-Jones, Pramerica Real Estate Investors

18:30 - 19:30

Welcome Drinks Reception in the exhibition hall

19:30 - 21:30

Dinner in the hotel restaurant (no formal arrangements)

09:00

Exhibition open and coffee served

09:15 - 09:35

NAPF welcome
Joanne Segars, Chief Executive, NAPF

09:35 - 10:15

Keynote address: Public sector pension reform: fact or fiction?
As UK economy tips back into recession, more pressure is mounting on public finances. Will reforming public sector pensions actually help or hinder the UK’s prospects for the future?
Anthony Hilton, Financial Editor of the Evening Standard
Chaired by Joanne Segars, Chief Executive, NAPF

10:15 - 11:00

What's next for the LGPS?
Work has begun on paving the way for LGPS 2014. What will the finished project look like? The chairman of the LGA talks about his vision for the future of the Local Government Pension Scheme.
Sir Merrick Cockell, Chair of Local Government Association
Chaired by Joanne Segars, Chief Executive, NAPF

11:00-11:30

Refreshment break in the exhibition hall

11:30 - 12:15

CONCURRENT SESSIONS

Pensions administration
Sponsored by Mercer

De-risking: the devil is in the detail
Reducing investment risk is important for local authorities. But what is the best way to manage risk cost-effectively? This session will explore potential options on how to deal with the administrative complexity of having different "sub-funds", looking at the steps LAs need to take and how they might be implemented.
Nick Buckmaster, Waltham Forest
Dan Melley, Mercer
Chaired by Darren Philp, Director of Policy, NAPF

Investment
Sponsored by
Capital Dynamics

Holding directors to account
Local Authorities are typically more aggressive than private sector funds on matters of board accountability, and they are more willing to go public on big issues. This session will look at the different approaches to holding directors to account.
Richard McIndoe, Strathclyde Pension Fund
Tom Powdrill, PIRC
Sacha Sadan, Legal & General Investment Management
Chaired by David Paterson, Head of Corporate Governance, NAPF

Thought leadership
Sponsored by
BNY Mellon

The currency iceberg
Currency movements on overseas investments can cause significant risks and cash flow problems for LA funds. How can LA funds mitigate their impact? This session will explore how to quantify and qualify the possible dangers created by foreign currencies and will give practical examples on how to navigate foreign currency markets more securely.
Arnaud Gérard, Pareto Investment Management
Co-speaker TBC
Chaired by Nick Buckland, Dorset County Council 

12:15 - 13:45

Lunch

13:45 - 14:30

Liquidity in the LGPS
How fast is the LGPS maturing? This session looks at the  impact of decreasing active membership of the LGPS and what it means for investment strategies and scheme liquidity.
Ewen Cameron Watt, BlackRock
Peter Morris, Greater Manchester Pension Fund
Chaired by Joanne Segars, Chief Executive, NAPF

14:35 - 15:20

CONCURRENT SESSIONS

Pensions administration
Sponsored by Mercer

Automatic enrolment - what do you need to know?
Although the LGPS already operates a form of automatic enrolment, the new employer duties coming into force in October 2012 apply to the LGPS. Gary Delderfield from Eversheds outlines what the reforms require, whilst Terry Edwards looks at some of the specific LGPS scheme changes needed.
Gary Delderfield, Eversheds
Terry Edwards, Local Government Association
Chaired by Bob Summers, CIPFA

Investment
Sponsored by Capital Dynamics

Can private equity bridge the funding liability gap?
Many local authority pension funds find themselves facing a funding gap. Can private equity provide practical solutions to help reduce the gap? What are the perceived hurdles? Are they real?
Kevin Dervey, West Midlands Pension Fund
Nigel Frisby, Greater Manchester Pension Fund
John Gripton, Capital Dynamics
Chaired by David Paterson, Head of Corporate Governance, NAPF

Thought leadership
Sponsored by
BNY Mellon

Value for money: where does it come from?
As budgets tighten, local authorities must seek value for money in a number of ways. Local authorities are already starting to work together around procurement. David Anthony and Nicola Mark consider other ways LA funds can achieve value for money.
David Anthony, Wiltshire Pension Fund
Nicola Mark, Norfolk Pension Fund
Chaired by Mike Taylor, London Pensions Fund Authority

15:20 - 15:45

Refreshment break in the exhibition hall

15:45 - 16:30

Project LGPS 2014 - the countdown begins
The new LGPS scheme will be implemented by 2014, with new regulations in place by 2013. But is this really possible? Terry Crossley, Jeff Houston and Mike Taylor look at the snakes and ladders the LGPS will encounter along the way.
Terry Crossley, CLG
Jeff Houston, Local Government Association
Mike Taylor, London Pensions Fund Authority
Chaired by Joanne Segars, Chief Executive NAPF

16:30 - 17:15

Keynote address: The future of public sector pensions
UNISON’s view
Heather Wakefield, Head of Local Government, UNISON
Chaired by Joanne Segars, Chief Executive, NAPF

19:00 - 22:00

Conference Gala Dinner sponsored by Newton Investment Management
After dinner speaker: Jeremy Vine, Broadcast Journalist
Dress code: lounge suits

Exhibition open and coffee served

09:30 - 10:15

Building Britain
Can local authorities save the British economy? The CEO of Infrastructure UK, Geoffrey Spence, makes the case for infrastructure investment while Joanne Segars explains the NAPF's work on the infrastructure platform.
Joanne Segars, Chief Executive, NAPF
Geoffrey Spence, CEO, Infrastructure UK
Chaired by Peter Morris, Greater Manchester Pension Fund

10:15 - 11:00

A long and winding road
As long term investors, pension funds need to take a long term view. How do decisions on monetary policy on interest rates and quantitative easing affect pension funds' position as long term investors?
Charlie Bean, Deputy Governor, Bank of England
Chaired by Joanne Segars, Chief Executive, NAPF

11:00 - 11:30

Refreshments break in the exhibition hall

11:30 - 12:15

Governance - do we need a new definition?
Lord Hutton made a number of recommendations in his final report around governance in the LGPS. But what does governance mean? Our speakers discuss how governance currently works in the LGPS.
Karen McWilliam, Hymans Robertson
Brian Strutton, GMB
Chaired by Nicola Mark, Norfolk Pension Fund

12:15 - 13:00

A lasting settlement
The Minister in charge of the LGPS sets out the Government’s view on the direction of the LGPS reforms.
Bob Neill MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government
Chaired by Joanne Segars, Chief Executive, NAPF

13:00

Lunch, and close of conference & exhibition