Pension insurance agreement secured

The Trustees of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers Staff Pension and Life Assurance Scheme are pleased to announce that they have entered into an insurance policy with Pension Insurance Corporation (PIC) to secure the benefits of all the members of the Pension scheme. The scheme currently has just over 200 members.

The agreement means that all the member benefits of the defined benefit pension scheme are now insured, enhancing the protection for scheme members and eliminating the financial risk for the Institution of the Scheme going forward.

The transaction, which followed a competitive selection process, was agreed in July 2025. 

Working together with IMechE as employer, the Pension Trustees have been able to stabilise the Pension Scheme assets and understand more clearly the future liabilities. This information enabled Past President Clive Hickman to sign a “financial support agreement” which allowed the Trustees of the Pension Fund to more effectively achieve their long-term strategy as described each year in the Annual report. 

Barnett Waddingham acted as actuarial, administration, investment and risk transfer advisers, while legal advice was provided to the Trustees by Sackers.

Isobel Pollock-Hulf OBE, Chair of the Pension Scheme Trustees, said:

“It is a great achievement to reach this significant milestone. This is the culmination of many years of hard work by Trustees past and present, which would not have been possible without the Institution’s diligent support of the Scheme. We would also like to thank our advisers Barnett Waddingham and Sackers for their leadership through the Scheme’s journey to this stage, and to IMechE and Pension Insurance Corporation (PIC) for working with the Trustees to achieve this buy-in transaction.”

The current trustees are: Isobel Pollock-Hulf (chair), Bob Money, Stephanie Rogers, Sarah Rogers, Malcolm Vincent, Stewart Pain, and Ian Joesbury.

Matt Garside, President at the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, said:

“We are delighted that the Scheme has been able to reach this agreement with Pension Insurance Corporation. It is a very positive outcome. Members’ benefits remain safe, and this is a simpler way of managing this pension fund, allowing the Institution to focus on its strategy and purpose. We are pleased to have worked closely with the Trustees and their advisers to support the Scheme to complete this transaction.”

Now that the Buy-in stage is complete, Isobel Pollock-Hulf who has chaired the Pension Trustees since 2017 is handing over to Ian Joesbury to chair the next stage of the process to achieve Buy-Out status.