It hardly seems a year ago that I was writing my first Chairman’s Review; the time has flown so fast as a result of the enormous changes taking place within the pensions world. The most obvious change within Kingfisher was the launch of the new Defined Contribution section of the Scheme which on its very first day attracted over 5000 members. Creating the Scheme and all the administration processes to ensure it is managed effectively required a monumental effort by the Pensions Team and I would like to take this opportunity formally to record the appreciation of the Trustees for their endeavour. For the whole of the year the team has been working round the clock to ensure everything has gone smoothly, so if you do happen to see any of the team looking frazzled you’ll know why!! There has also been significant work undertaken on the Scheme’s communication material and you should all by now have received your new Scheme booklets. A further improvement this year will be within your Annual Benefit Statement which will be issued later this year. For the first time we will be able to provide you with details of what Pension you might expect to receive from the State. By having this information alongside the illustration of your Kingfisher pension, you will be able to get a much clearer idea of the level of pension you can expect to retire on.

The Trustee’s workload has also increased significantly this year as a result of a formal funding valuation of the Scheme following the closure to new members and the transfer out of the Comet membership. Part of the valuation process has been to reach agreement with the Group on the level of contributions to be paid for the next three years. I am pleased to report that the Group has again demonstrated its continuing commitment to the Scheme by significantly increasing its contributions to the Scheme. Indeed over the next three years the Group will be contributing some £370 million into the Scheme.

This is obviously great news for all members and I would like to take the opportunity formally to record the Trustees’ thanks to the Group for the pro-active approach they have taken during these discussions.

In addition to the valuation, the Trustees are also undertaking a review of the Scheme’s investment strategy. Whilst this is a lengthy process and still has significant work to be undertaken, major progress has been made already and further details can be found on page 18 of this year’s Report PDF. I am pleased to say that the objective of the review is to reduce risk in the Scheme which will in turn provide greater protection and security for all members.

Turning to the wider perspective, last year I briefly mentioned that the Government was introducing two major pieces of legislation aimed at providing greater security for members, and attempting to simplify what can often be seen as a mysterious and complicated subject. Both of these initiatives should be welcomed and the Trustees, supported by Colin Hately and his team are in the process of identifying the impact for the Scheme to ensure the appropriate measures can be taken to ensure compliance. This is going to prove to be another challenging year for the Trustees and the Pensions Team but one we are all prepared to meet.

Finally, amidst all the activity, I am pleased to report that for the fourteenth year running, all pensions have been increased in line with inflation.




Tony Stanworth