Outcomes from the London CIV Annual Conference 2024
London’s LGPS community gathered late last week at the London CIV Annual Conference to discuss how it will work more collegiately to drive further growth, savings and security. The conference took place on 5 and 6 September in the Royal Borough of Greenwich at one of the capital’s newest cultural hubs, Woolwich Works.
During the conference, Dean Bowden, CEO of London CIV, noted that while pooling within the capital has accelerated over the past year (18% YoY as at 31 March 2024) and £86m in savings has been generated since London CIV’s inception, “we are not the finished article”.
“With the government’s March 2025 pooling deadline still standing, if we can further act as an LGPS community, there is an opportunity to show we can deliver to expectations.”
The two-day conference started the day after the government called on local government pension schemes to provide evidence as part of its Pensions Review, which is looking to find savings and efficiencies within LGP schemes, as well as increase LGPS investment into the UK.
Bowden highlighted to delegates that, recognising the inevitable direction of travel regardless of the recent general election result, London’s LGPS community was already taking the initiative to address these matters.
London CIV, working in collaboration with partner funds, has developed a strategy that recognises their individual fiduciary responsibility, idiosyncrasies and value, but also considers how we can work more as a London LGPS community, acting with greater homogeneity to drive efficiencies and improve outcomes.
Bowden added: “This strategy is aligned to what we believe to be government desired outcomes”, with key areas currently being worked on including:
Bowden stressed that these enhanced services must be a choice offering. “They cannot be compelled upon partner funds. Someone willingly working with you is worth five times that to those who are forced to - I have been clear since I started that there must always be choice. Therefore, what we produce must be compelling and offer true value. This should be true of everything we do as London’s LGPS community.”
Bowden noted that much of the capability to deliver these new services already exist within the London LGPS community, highlighting London CIV’s recent appointment of Chief Proposition Officer Andrien Meyers, who has joined the investment pool from the London Borough of Sutton and Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, where he was Head of Pensions Investments.
Addressing conference delegates, Bowden added: “I genuinely hope Andrien is just the first example of increased transience within this community, harnessing the existing knowledge and skills within London’s LGPS to enable London CIV to become the embedded investment function for each of our partner funds.”
Meyers, who officially started in his new role at London CIV last week (2nd September), also addressed this year’s conference delegates, stating:
“Choice, collaboration and compromise sit at the heart of this strategy. There are 32 local authorities in London and each one has a different set of needs. But the more we act in the manner of a homogenous entity and operate as a collegiate community across London, the more we can deliver a clear message that we are already doing what is required. What’s more, it will be most successful if led by those in the community who know the needs of their stakeholders best.”
Meyers added: “Any future strategy cannot just focus on the pooling of LGPS assets, rather it’s about working together to improve the management of all aspects of the London LGPS, whether that’s:
This year’s London CIV Annual Conference was attended by more than 120 councillors and pension officials from London boroughs. Keynote and panel session topics that were covered included the government’s calls for evidence, investing in affordable housing, views from the private sector, nature-based, credit and infrastructure investment solutions, the impact of geo-political events, market movements and net-zero targets.
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*Investing in the UK
The LCIV UK Housing Fund, which enables partner funds to invest in affordable housing across the UK, has so far attracted investments from eight London boroughs, with the fund’s size now standing at £450m as at 30 April 2024. It is 100% invested in the UK.
The London Fund is £250m in size (as at 31 March 2024) and invests in a range of diverse projects in the capital, including the regeneration of Shepherd’s Bush Market, the redevelopment of the Saville Theatre, Virtus Data Centers and Edge, the net zero development in London Bridge.
The LCIV Real Estate Long Income (RELI) Fund is 100% invested in UK real estate including hotels, student accommodation, retail units and academic buildings. Fund commitments were at £213m at 30 April 2024.
The LCIV Renewable Infrastructure Fund is 42% invested in the UK of which the majority are in wind and solar generation with a small amount of investment in batter storage, energy transmission and other clean energy initiatives. The fund size increased from £983m in December to £1.1bn at 30 April 2024.
The LCIV Infrastructure Fund is 35% invested in the UK of which approximately 70% of investments are in the renewable energy sector with the remainder in social infrastructure, transport and utilities. The fund’s size increased from £399m in December 2023 to £475m at 30 April 2024.
For enquiries, contact:
Richard O’Donnell, Head of Marketing
richard.odonnell@londonciv.org.uk
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