A “hints and tips” brief, which underscores the importance of trustee board diversity and inclusion, has been launched by the Association of Professional Pension Trustees (APPT).

The brief encompasses several key areas including whether trustee boards should have a diversity and inclusion policy and providing guidance on how this can be progressed.

Additionally, the brief covers advice on examining whether there is anything in the current process and materials that might discourage certain scheme members from becoming trustees.

Once a trustee board decides what it wants to achieve in relation to diversity and inclusion, the brief outlines how periodic targets should be set, and progress tracked.

In addition to this, the briefing underscored the importance of ensuring advisers to the board reflect diversity and inclusion in their servicing role.

The briefing marks the first step by the AAPT in a programme of activities, called APPT KnowHow, which will aim to help professional trustees shape the development of trustee boards, so they encompass the positive aspects of diversity and inclusion.

APPT chair, Harus Rai, commented: “The importance of making progress in this area has been detailed by the government and regulators and only recently we have seen that surveys of the sector in future will be monitoring how trustees are responding to the dynamics of D&I.

“As a body, the APPT is determined to help our members respond to the challenges so that the boards our members serve can have confidence in the tailored and best practice guidance they receive.”

APPT diversity and inclusion committee chair, Manpreet Sohal, also emphasised the importance of the topic, highlighting recent research from the association that found many APPT members thought they could benefit from additional guidance and support on how to achieve inclusion.

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