The opdu Report - Issue 14, May 2003

Bulletin Board
The Pensions Archives
Alan Herbert

Following the announcement last year of the plans to establish a Pensions Archives to capture the story of the development of pension provision in the United Kingdom over the last century opdu is pleased to support the Steering Group which was set up earlier this year to move the project forward by providing meeting and secretarial facilities.

The Steering Group consists of Alan Herbert
(Chairman); Neville Otty (Secretary); Professor David Blake, The Pensions Institute and Birbeck College; Graham Brown, Barnardo's; Ian Eggleden, The Pensions Management Institute; Chris Lewin, Unilever; Geoff Oldham formerly Meyer International; Maurice Oldfield formerly Allied Domecq; Alan Philipp, Pension Funds & their Advisers; John Quarrell, Quartersonline; John Reeve, Hazell Carr; Kevin Sims, The Pension Fund Partnership and Mike Young, The Pensions Research Accountants Group. Ken Ayers and Alastair Ross Goobey have also agreed to lend the Group their support.

The search is now on to find a university or other educational body which could provide facilities to house the archives which will need space to expand over the years. A number of universities have developed relationships with particular industries and professions but the challenge is finding one which can offer suitable accommodation. Discussions are being held with various universities but if any readers of the opdu report have connections with a university which may be able to provide space to accommodate the archives do let Alan Herbert or one of the other Steering Group members know.

The main objective of the project is educational and a charitable trust, known as The Pensions Archives Trust is being set up to run the Archives. The Trustees will have overall responsibility but the day-to-day management will be handled by a Management Committee. Discussions have been held with a Consultant Archivist who would provide consultancy and project management for

• Management of the Archives
  Development of policy and procedures for the management of the archives and records during their entire life cycle; advice on archive accommodation and storage requirements in accordance with current British Standards for archival storage.
  
  
• Archive Collection Cataloguing
  Advice on the arrangement and cataloguing of the material collected including the development of classification schemes and evaluation of cataloguing software.
  
  
• Records Retention Policies
  Development of retention policies, audits of current information and retention practices, surveys of the quantity, location and condition of records and their storage facilities.
  
  
• Vital Records Programmes
  Identification of vital records and recommendations for storage and protection as part of disaster recovery procedures.

The idea is to have samples of documentation; trust deeds and rules and records starting from when pension arrangements were first set up through to the present time. In addition papers and documents, including Acts, which have significantly impacted on the way that that pension provision has developed in this Country will be held.

It is envisaged that documents and materials will be loaned or donated by trustees, sponsoring employers, individuals and professional bodies. Alastair Ross Goobey has kindly indicated that the papers of his late father George Ross Goobey written at the time he introduced the cult of equity investment into pension funds in the 1950s would be made available. PRAG has also indicated that it would like to see the many papers it has produced on pension fund reporting and accounting, since it was formed in 1976, held in a central pensions archives so that they were available to a wider audience.

The availability of these documents and records to students and others, such as political researchers, should help to improve the understanding of the important role that private pension provision has played in this Country.

It is hoped that those in possession of pension documents and records which could be of an historic interest to future generations will consider offering them to the Archives before disposing of them. As indicated, The Pensions Archives Trust will need to assess all such material in line with the policy it develops so that there is not duplication of material but it ensures that unique material is preserved. All this will cost money and an appeal will
be launched once the Trust is set up. Applications will also be made for grants to provide the necessary funding so that archives are established which do justice to the pensions movement.

For further details see the website: www.thepfp.com/opat