ACCESS welcomes new Contracts Manager

Experienced pensions professional Richard Smith joins ACCESS after 20 years at Northern Trust.

Richard Smith joins ACCESS from Northern Trust having supported LGPS clients for the last 12 years. He brings a wealth of experience from the asset management and asset servicing sector along with incredible knowledge and insight in regard to how institutional investors navigate change and complexity. Richard will initially work alongside existing Contracts Manager Mark Paget in a structured handover.

Kevin McDonald, ACCESS Support Unit (ASU) Director, said: “Richard will be a tremendous asset for ACCESS. Initially he will work in parallel with Mark Paget to allow a structured handover to take place, before Mark takes his well-deserved retirement early next year.

“Richard has somewhat of a head start, given that he has already worked with the ACCESS Authorities in his previous role, and brings a detailed understanding of both the current LGPS pooling landscape and its evolution since 2015.

“This means the considerable career knowledge he has amassed at Northern Trust enables him to make a unique and fundamental contribution to the continued evolution of the ACCESS pool. This will be of particular value as the current engagement with Government on the Pensions Review unfolds.

“I am delighted he is joining the ASU.”

Richard Smith, ACCESS Contract Manager, said: “With the election of the new Labour Government and pension reform rising to the summit of the UK economic agenda, this is a uniquely interesting moment to join the LGPS community.

“At Northern Trust I spent the last 12 years supporting the transformational change of LGPS clients across the whole of the UK. Navigating ever greater complexity of investments and operating models and supporting the launch of pooling structures across multiple asset classes were amongst the many challenges.

“In joining the ACCESS pool, I intend to bring that experience and build upon the excellent work of Mark Paget and the rest of the ACCESS Support Unit, managing the pool’s contracted suppliers on behalf of the investors, ensuring value for money and helping all parties navigate the outcomes of the forthcoming pension reforms.”