It's been three years since we last took the temperature of our members on responsible investment issues, and we are excited to be running our big responsible investment survey again this year!
This post contains a bit more information about the background, why we are running this survey, and why members should join in.
The Fund
Our investments are currently just over £3bn, and are invested in a broad range of investments, sectors and geographies. We have >85,000 members from c.180 employer organisations. We are a defined benefit scheme. This means that members' benefits are guaranteed by law, and will not be affected by investment performance. Even so, we know that how the money we hold to pay for those benefits is invested is of great interest and importance to members, and that's where this survey comes in!
Our Approach to Investment
As a Fund, it is our duty to act in the best interests of our beneficiaries. Our goal is to safeguard the Fund's assets and secure a sustainable financial future for the Fund. We use responsible investment as a tool to help us achieve this goal. It is never something that we practice at the expense of earning strong risk-adjusted returns. Responsible investment helps us to make sure that the companies we invest in are well-managed and set up to succeed, and that the risk of failure is reduced. Even when we invest with a goal of achieving a positive social and/or environmental impact, we never sacrifice earning a competitive financial return.
The last survey in 2021
When we last ran a similar survey, we were blown away by the level of interest. We received an enormous 2,251 responses! Click below to view a summary of the survey responses from 2021.
Click to view previous results
Why should I respond?
We are genuinely interested in the views of our members, and the information we gain from the survey helps us to make decisions on what we do, and on what we communicate to our members.
For example, in 2021, 86% of our members answered "yes" or "maybe" to the question "is it important to you for the Fund to invest in sustainable and/or low carbon assets?". This was considered by our committee and was part of their decision, made in the Fund's best financial interest, to set a target of net zero by 2050 for the Fund's investments.
How can I take part?
All members for whom we hold an email address will have been invited to participate in the survey. We are also attempting to reach even more members by sending the link to our employer organisations so they can share it with the relevant employees. If you are a member of Wiltshire Pension Fund and do not have a link, please contact pensioncommunications@wiltshire.gov.uk to receive a link.
Can I see the results?
Yes! We are looking forward to sharing the results in due course. We will publish them in full online when they have been analysed, and will include highlights in our other publications (such as the Annual Report 2023/24).
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