The Trustee is responsible for managing the Fund in accordance with its Trust Deed & Rules and prevailing legislation.

The Trustee is ICI Pensions Trustee Limited and is completely separate from the contributing employers (AkzoNobel and ICI). It is owned by an independent trustee company, The Law Debenture Trust Corporation p.l.c.

The Trustee Board consists of 11 Directors:

• five Member-Nominated Directors (MNDs) who are members of the Fund and applied for the role with membership support;
• an Independent Director (Law Debenture Trust Corporation p.l.c.); and
• five other Directors, appointed with the agreement of the Independent Director.

The Trustee Board uses four committees to help run the Fund. The committees are made up of a mix of Trustee Directors who focus on different areas. The committees are:

• Investment Committee (IC) – makes investment policy decisions, appoints investment managers for the Fund and monitors their performance within the parameters set by the Board.
• Strategic Risk Committee (SRC) – considers wider economic, political and regulatory issues that may have a significant impact on the Fund or affect employer support for the Fund.
• Policy and Administration Committee (PAC) – makes policy decisions about how the day-to-day administration of the Fund should be managed and the provision of discretionary benefits. It also monitors the performance of the administration provider.
• Appeals Committee – hears appeals against decisions made at the first stage of the Fund's formal internal dispute resolution procedure (IDRP) and reviews a proportion of the decisions taken on discretionary benefits.

Details of the individuals who are the Trustee Directors, and the committees they sit on, are included in the annual member newsletter, Pensions News. Copies of Pensions News can be found in the Library.

The role of a Member-Nominated Director (MND) would be of interest to anyone who enjoys a challenge and working as part of a team. It gives you an opportunity to be involved in running one of the biggest pension funds in the UK.

What does being a MND involve?

Commitment

Being a MND nowadays typically involves devoting about 20 days a year to attending Trustee Board meetings, committee meetings and training events, with as much time again needed to study papers in advance. Due to the complex nature of pension schemes, all Trustee Directors of the Fund are required to successfully complete the Pensions Regulator's trustee toolkit within 12 months of their appointment.

Development

Training on all aspects of the role and the key decisions that you will need to make as part of the Trustee Board is provided to all Trustee Directors. In addition, the Company supports the Fund by allowing Trustee Directors who are Company employees time off from their normal duties and pays remuneration to all other Directors.

To find out more about what is involved in being on a trustee board, you can visit the Pensions Regulator’s website at www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk and, in particular, their training website www.trusteetoolkit.com

What is the application process?

To be nominated as a MND, you must be a contributing, deferred or pensioner member of the Fund. You will also need to provide proof that three other Fund members support your nomination for this role.

If you’re keen, we encourage you to put yourself forward – please contact ICI Pensions Services who will send you an information pack on the nomination and selection process. Full instructions about how to apply are included in this pack.

Once we have received your nomination and a vacancy arises, we will ask you to complete a detailed questionnaire, which forms part of the selection process.

The Trustee is supported by a range of professional advisers.

Actuary: David Donneky, Towers Watson Limited

Auditor: KPMG LLP

Investment Adviser: Towers Watson Investment Consulting

Investment Managers: A list of investment managers appointed by the Trustee can be found in the Report of the Trustee and Financial Statements.

Solicitors: Allen & Overy LLP, Squire Sanders (UK) LLP