What is a pension scheme secretary?

A pension scheme secretary is the person responsible for the smooth governance and administration of a pension scheme's trustee function. The role goes well beyond taking minutes: a scheme secretary coordinates meetings, maintains governance documentation, tracks regulatory deadlines, monitors action points, liaises with advisers and administrators, and helps trustees operate efficiently and compliantly. At their best, they act as a strategic partner to the trustee board, not simply a support function.

Why does a pension scheme need a scheme secretary?

Trustees carry significant legal and fiduciary responsibilities and must navigate an increasingly complex regulatory environment. Without strong secretarial support, even a capable trustee board can become reactive rather than strategic, overwhelmed by the volume and complexity of ongoing work. A good scheme secretary ensures that decisions are properly recorded, regulatory obligations are met on time, and governance standards are consistently maintained. The Pensions Regulator's General Code has made this kind of informed, ongoing support essential rather than optional.

What does a scheme secretary actually do day to day?

The scope of the role varies by scheme, but typically includes:

Setting agendas in conjunction with the chair and trustees

Collating and issuing meeting papers, often via an online trustee portal

Attending meetings and capturing discussions, decisions, and action points accurately

Producing clear, concise minutes and distributing them promptly after each meeting

Maintaining comprehensive action logs and proactively chasing progress

Maintaining business plans and risk registers

Evidencing Effective System of Governance (ESOG) activities, ensuring all policies are reviewed regularly and drafting Own Risk Assessments (ORA)

Coordinating across advisers, administrators, and the employer

Undertaking service provider reviews to ensure service is maintained at a high standard

Budget monitoring and cost approval processes

Running Trustee effectiveness reviews to maximise the success of the Board within the governance structure.

Supporting trustees in understanding and meeting regulatory obligations (HMRC, Scheme Returns and sign off of scheme accounts)

Contributing to major scheme projects such as buy-in or buy-out transactions

Supporting members with queries and complaints, while ensuring compliance with all statutory deadlines.

Can a scheme secretary help with major projects, not just meetings?

Yes. For schemes undergoing significant change, an experienced scheme secretary can add considerable value beyond routine meeting support. In one of our engagements, we worked alongside an in-house scheme secretary at a large retail scheme undertaking a buy-in to buy-out process across two defined benefit schemes. Our team helped drive the project forward, coordinated all parties, ensured adherence to challenging timescales, provided challenge to advisers, and applied financial discipline by reviewing adviser budgets and tracking costs on an ongoing basis.

What are the benefits of using an external scheme secretarial service?

There are several key advantages. First, independence: an external scheme secretary is entirely independent of the scheme's advisers, which means they can provide objective scrutiny and constructive challenge in a way that an in-house resource may find harder to do. Second, depth of resource: a specialist team can absorb peaks in workload, provide cover during absences, and bring collective experience from supporting a wide range of schemes. Third, reduced key person risk: schemes that rely on a single in-house individual are vulnerable if that person is absent or leaves. An external team significantly mitigates that risk by ensuring continuity through a team-based delivery model, reinforced by internal peer review and quality assurance.

We already have an in-house scheme secretary. Can you work alongside them?

Absolutely. Many of our engagements involve working in close partnership with an in-house team. We provide additional capacity and specialist support where it is needed most, whether that is minute-taking, paper production, action tracking, or project work. The arrangement is flexible, so there is always coverage and neither routine nor project work is disrupted. Our retail client, for example, valued the fact that we worked flexibly alongside their in-house scheme secretary, ensuring that both day-to-day governance and fast-moving projects continued to progress without interruption.

Our scheme has multiple committees meeting frequently. Can you manage that volume?

Yes. We are experienced in supporting complex governance structures with significant meeting volumes. For one large retail client, we support the trustee board and three committees, each of which meets monthly, in a fast-paced environment. For a major UK bank, we provide minute-secretary support across multiple trustee boards and committees, meeting tight turnaround requirements and maintaining consistency of documentation across all reporting lines. Managing high-volume, technically complex governance programmes is a core part of what we do.

How do you ensure minutes are accurate when discussions are highly technical?

Our team brings genuine pensions expertise, not just administrative capability. Before each meeting, we review agendas, prior minutes, and relevant scheme documentation so we arrive with strong contextual understanding. During the meeting, we capture discussions with precision. After the meeting, we produce drafts that are clear, accurate, and aligned with the client's governance style. All drafts are peer-reviewed before submission to ensure consistency, completeness, and accuracy. We do not simply transcribe what is said; we apply professional judgement to ensure the minutes reflect what was decided and why.

What happens if we need a scheme secretary at short notice or during a transition?

We are well placed to provide interim support quickly and without disruption. Governance deadlines, trustee meetings, and adviser coordination do not pause during a recruitment process, and we understand that. Our structured onboarding approach means we can step in rapidly, taking time to understand the scheme's governance structure, preferred meeting formats, communication expectations, and upcoming regulatory priorities. We have supported many schemes through transitions where an incumbent scheme secretary has stepped down or moved on, and in every case we have been able to maintain continuity and keep the trustee board operating effectively.

How does Law Debenture's scheme secretarial service differ from that of a general administrator?

We are not generalist administrators. Our team members have deep knowledge of pensions governance, trustee obligations, and the regulatory framework. We are entirely independent of scheme advisers, which means we can provide rigorous, objective input across all aspects of the role. We bring best practice from a broad range of client engagements, we actively contribute to governance quality rather than simply recording it, and we develop a genuine, long-term understanding of each client's scheme, culture, and objectives. Our clients regularly tell us they value the reliability, consistency, and expertise we bring.

How do we get started?

To find out more about Law Debenture's scheme secretarial services, please contact catherine.palarca@lawdeb.com.

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