Growing Pensions Performance & the UK Economy
Private market allocations are growing at many pension funds, especially within the LGPS and increasingly at larger DC schemes and Master Trusts, based upon the belief that these investments will deliver both attractive long-term performance as well as diversification benefits and positive societal impact. In addition, the UK Government has embarked on an ambitious programme to encourage the pensions industry to invest further still in private assets, especially through the creation of the British Growth Partnership administered by the British Business Bank, as well as calls for consolidation among both LGPS and DC plans as announced at the Mansion House.
While opportunities abound, key to a step change in these investments will be to ensure that fiduciary and due diligence obligations are satisfied, and that vehicles can be developed that overcome scale, size and track record requirements, especially in earlier stage venture capital projects.
The conference will gather many of the major investors and asset allocators across the UK pensions industry, together with government-backed organisations, private investment managers and other leading stakeholders. A comprehensive picture of the state of pensions investment in private markets will be presented, followed by extensive debates on the contribution that these assets will play in the future success of the industry and for the economy at large.
In common with all SGPE Masterclasses, the conference will be highly interactive, with free and frank exchanges of views, a focus on original and thought-provoking content, and with participants encouraged to engage and contribute proactively throughout.
Chair

Mark Thompson
Chair of the Trustee Board
M&G Pension Scheme
Agenda
Devil's Advocates (Morning Session)
Kerry King, Executive Director of Capital Markets, Accounting for Sustainability
Neil Mason, LGPS Senior Officer, Surrey Pension Fund
Mark Tennant, Trustee, Country Landowners Pension Fund
A panel of Devil’s Advocates will be on duty for the course of the morning.
They will pose challenging questions to any of the conference speakers when invited to do so by the Moderator in each session. They will provide some brief comments of their impressions before lunch.
09.45 – 10.00
Welcome & Introduction
Conference Chair:
Mark Thompson
Chair of the Trustee Board
M&G Pension Scheme
Programme Director:
Stephen Glover
Founder & Director
SG Pensions Enterprise
10.00 – 11.00
Panel Discussion: How Can the Government Support Pension Investment in Private Markets?
Moderator:
Mark Thompson
Chair of the Trustee Board
M&G Pension Scheme
Presenter:
Roland Phillips
Senior Policy Adviser
Pensions Investment Review Team
HM Treasury
Panellists:
Sally Bridgeland
Chair
Brunel Pension Partnership
Ian Connatty
Managing Partner
British Growth Partnership
Douglas Hansen-Luke
Executive Chairman
Future Planet Capital
For the Government’s growth and “Buy Britain” agenda to be fully realised, pension funds and other asset owners will need to increase their allocations to venture capital investments. Following an exposition on the Mansion House and other Government pensions policy initiatives by Roland Phillips of HM Treasury, he and our expert panel will discuss the following:
- Explain the nature of the British Growth Partnership, the British Business Bank and the UK Investment Bank (National Wealth Fund) and how they interlink with the Mansion House Compact and other government initiatives
- How these organisations plan to encourage and assist pension investment in private markets
- Debate the commonalities and divergences in purposes and investment objectives between them and the priorities of pension investors
- Discuss how the wider investment industry fits in: private pensions, wealth managers as well as insurers through DB risk transfer strategies
11.00 – 11.20
Presentation: The State of the Market for UK Private Capital
Oliver Bell
Doctoral Candidate
Leeds University Business School
Our speaker will mainly consider three asset classes within private markets – private equity, private debt and infrastructure. In each case, he will examine the size of the sector in the UK, and where both LGPS and Non-LGPS pension funds are deploying their investments between the UK, the US and the Rest of the World.
He will also provide a breakdown of fees across the three sectors, with definitive data on management, administration and governance costs associated with these assets, and conclusions on which types of schemes have better bargaining power.
11.20 – 11.50
Coffee Break & Networking
11.50 – 12.15
Presentation: Investing in Nature - Generating Returns While Creating a World Worth Living In
Robert Gardner
CEO & Co-Founder
Rebalance Earth
Our speaker will explore the impact of the Climate and Nature crises on UK investment portfolios, companies, and communities, focusing on how these challenges directly affect investors.
The talk will highlight how climate risks in the UK manifest through water—too much (flooding), too little (drought), and too dirty (pollution) – and how these issues cascade through value chains, financial systems, and local economies.
Investing in Nature-based solutions through private market vehicles can mitigate these risks while delivering financial, natural, and social returns. Furthermore, investing in natural capital can enhance portfolio resilience, support decarbonisation efforts, and align with fiduciary responsibilities, creating value for members and communities – a world worth living in.
12.15 – 13.00
Panel Discussion: The Investment Realities for Pension Funds
Moderator:
Charlotte Moore
Freelance Journalist
Independent
Stephen Budge
Partner
LCP
Chris Hitchen
Chairman
Border to Coast Pension Partnership
Veronica Humble
Chief Investment Officer
NatWest Cushon
Ruston Smith
Chairman
Tesco Pension Fund
Speakers from a corporate pension fund, a LGPS scheme, a leading Master Trust, and a consultant discuss the government’s private markets allocation targets for pension schemes against the realities at the coalface.
- Do the government’s objectives square with schemes’ own investment plans for private markets and venture capital?
- What is the role of the various PM strategies in asset allocation?
- How do the opportunities differ between LGPS and corporate schemes?
- Which investments and products are they each most interested in, and for what purposes?
- How are schemes and their advisers seeking to overcome some of the key constraints to greater involvement in private assets?
13.00 – 13.10
Devil's Advocates Summary
The Devil’s Advocates will offer their summary and main takeaways from the conference’s proceedings.
Kerry King
Executive Director of Capital Markets
Accounting for Sustainability
LGPS Senior Officer
Surrey Pension Fund
Mark Tennant
Trustee
Country Landowners Pension Fund
13.10 – 14.10
Lunch & Networking
Devil's Advocates (Afternoon Session)
Jamie Broderick, Board Member, Impact Investing Institute
Denise Le Gal, Chair, Brightwell
Luke Webster, Chief Investment Officer, Greater London Authority
A panel of Devil’s Advocates will be on duty for the course of the afternoon.
They will pose challenging questions to any of the conference speakers when invited to do so by the Moderator in each session. They will provide a summary of their impressions and key takeaways at the close.
14.10 – 14.30
Presentation: Optimal Implementation - Finding the Right Fund Structures
Jignasa Patel
Managing Director, Business Development
Carne Group
There are multiple investment vehicles that can be chosen to access private market assets. These include direct investment funds, co-investment, funds-of-funds, LTAFs, investment trusts and others. Trustees need to understand their relative merits and which vehicle is best suited both to the type of pension scheme and the nature of the investment.
Our speaker will explore the pros and cons of these different routes to market, and shed light on the many complexities.
14.30 – 14.55
Presentation: Private Credit . . . But Not As You Know It
Duncan Sankey
Head of Credit Research
Cheyne Capital
The sponsor-backed direct lending market is overcrowded with too much money chasing too few ideas.
This has led to unfavourable developments such as the rise of Payment-in-Kind (PIK), manager concentration, erosion of creditor defences and lender-on-lender violence.
There is a compelling alternative. Significant Risk Transfers (SRTs), formerly known as Regulatory Capital transactions, allow banks to buy credit protection on loan portfolios in order to release regulatory capital.
The loans remain on the banks’ balance sheets, providing an alignment of interest and giving investors exposure to loans they would not otherwise be able to access since these are the loans that the banks want to retain.
SRT funds offer attractive returns to investors with considerable downside robustness and highly predictable cashflows.
14.55 – 15.40
Roundtable Discussions: The Critical Decision Factors in Private Markets Investing
Facilitator:
Paddy Dowdall
Assistant Executive Director
Greater Manchester Pension Fund
Roundtable Moderators
Scott Anderson, Investment Manager, Environment Agency Pension Fund
Rachel Brougham, Trustee Executive, BESTrustees
Andy Cox, Chair, NatWest DC Plan
Robert Gardner, CEO & Co-Founder, Rebalance Earth
Hill Gaston, Principal, Mercer
Mark Hedges, Trustee Director, Nationwide Pension Fund
Ian McKinlay, Senior Adviser, Avida International
Toby Nangle, Contributing Editor, Financial Times
Stephanie Nuttall, Head of Pension Scheme Executive, M&G
Hugh Smart, Investment Advisor & Trustee, Independent
Following a scene-setting introduction, a Moderator at each table will lead a discussion on the key decision factors facing asset owners in allocating private markets, especially in light of the Government’s initiatives in this area. These will embrace fiduciary duty, due diligence costs, required hurdle rates, valuation methodologies, liquidity and scale considerations and appropriate investment vehicles, while taking account of the different priorities and constraints for LGPS, Corporate DB and DC schemes.
Several of the Moderators will be called upon to summarise their conclusions to the overall conference on the viability of Private Markets investing in the current environment.
15.40 – 16.00
Coffee Break & Networking
16.00 – 16.30
Case Study: Beyond Pooling - How LGPS Funds are Driving Direct VC Investment
Scott Anderson
Investment Manager
Environment Agency Pension Fund
Craig Douglas
Partner
World Fund
This session, led by EAPF and World Fund, will challenge the idea that mandatory pooling drives more venture capital investment by highlighting how LGPS funds are already investing directly in high-impact, first-time funds with strong returns.
EAPF will share its climate-focused investment strategy and why it invests off-pool, while World Fund will showcase its approach to driving both impact and financial returns, comparing Private Market investments in venture vs infrastructure or public markets.
16.30 – 16.55
Presentation: Local Investment Opportunities in Private Markets
James Livingston
Partner
Foresight Group
Oliver Bates
Investment Director Private Debt
Foresight Group
Our speakers will present private equity and private debt case studies demonstrating successful regional investment strategies undertaken on behalf of pension funds across the UK.
They will discuss the decision criteria involved, the purposes of the investments, and the expected returns, risks and outcomes for the pension schemes, their members and the wider community.
16.55 – 17.05
Devil's Advocates Summary
The Devil’s Advocates will offer their summary and main takeaways from the conference’s proceedings.
Jamie Broderick
Board Member
Impact Investing Institute
Denise Le Gal
Chair
Brightwell
Luke Webster
Chief Investment Officer
Greater London Authority
17.05 – 17.15
Chair's Closing Remarks
17.15 – 18.45
Drinks Reception & Networking
Speakers

Scott Anderson
Investment Manager
Environment Agency Pension Fund

Oliver Bates
Investment Director Private Debt
Foresight Group

Oliver Bell
Doctoral Candidate
Leeds University Business School

Sally Bridgeland
Chair
Brunel Pension Partnership

Jamie Broderick
Board Member
Impact Investing Institute

Stephen Budge
Partner
LCP

Rachel Brougham
Trustee Executive
BESTrustees

Ian Connatty
Managing Partner British Growth Partnership

Andy Cox
Chair
NatWest DC Plan

Craig Douglas
Partner
World Fund

Paddy Dowdall
Assistant Executive Director
Greater Manchester Pension Fund

Robert Gardner
CEO & Co-Founder
Rebalance Earth

Hill Gaston
UK Head of Sustainable Investment
Mercer

Douglas Hansen-Luke
Executive Chairman
Future Planet Capital

Mark Hedges
Trustee Director
Nationwide Pension Fund

Chris Hitchen
Chairman
Border to Coast Pension Partnership

Veronica Humble
Chief Investment Officer
NatWest Cushon

Kerry King
Executive Director of Capital Markets
Accounting for Sustainability

Denise Le Gal
Chair
Brightwell

James Livingston
Partner
Foresight Group

Neil Mason
LGPS Senior Officer
Surrey Pension Fund

Ian McKinlay
Senior Adviser
Avida International

Charlotte Moore
Freelance Journalist
Independent

Toby Nangle
Contributing Editor
Financial Times

Stephanie Nuttall
Head of Pension Scheme Executive
M&G

Jignasa Patel
Managing Director - Business Development
Carne Group

Roland Phillips
Senior Policy Adviser, Pensions Investment Review Team
HM Treasury

Duncan Sankey
Head of Credit Research
Cheyne Capital

Hugh Smart
Investment Advisor & Trustee
Independent

Ruston Smith
Chairman
Tesco Pension Fund

Mark Tennant
Trustee
Country Landowners Pension Fund

Mark Thompson
Chair of Trustee Board
M&G Pension Scheme
Venue
This event will be held at the Ironmongers’ Hall in London.
Plan your journey via Transport for London.
Nearest Tube/Underground Stations (Tfl)
Barbican (Circle, Metropolitan, H&C - 2 mins)
St Paul's (Central - 6 mins)
Moorgate (Circle, Metropolitan, Northern, H&C - 10 mins)
Farringdon (Circle, H&C, Elizabeth - 11 mins)
Nearest Train Stations (National Rail)
Farringdon (11 mins)