Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme (MPS) has appointed Brightwell, the primary services provider to the BT Pension Scheme (BTPS), as administrator, providing services from January 2025.

Brightwell was appointed following a competitive tender process.

As part of the deal, Brightwell will provide a complete pension administration service to MPS, including handling all member processes and contact from its administration centre.

Brightwell’s call handlers are all qualified pension administrators who have undertaken training to provide members with resolutions to their queries.

In addition to this, Brightwell will introduce a new personalised online portal for MPS members who prefer to manage their pension online, which will be hosted on Procentia’s IntelliPen system introduced by Brightwell for BTPS in 2021.

Commenting on the appointment, Coal Pension Trustees Services CEO, Dan Whincup, said: “After a thorough review of its administration services, I’m delighted to announce that the trustee of the MPS has appointed Brightwell as the scheme’s next administrator.

“We’ve been particularly impressed with how Brightwell has transformed services for BTPS members.

“We know that MPS and BTPS share very similar values, and we will work closely with Brightwell to further improve our own services.

“I’m confident that members will receive the best possible service under the new contract with Brightwell.”

Adding to this, Brightwell CEO, Morten Nilsson, said: “We launched Brightwell in April last year and winning this contract demonstrates that there’s real appetite for a more partnership-based approach in the pensions industry.

“For too long pensions administration has suffered from under-investment. Our focus is on providing a high-quality member experience delivered efficiently, underpinned by actionable insights.

“We look forward to leveraging all of our technology and experience to deliver a first-rate service to MPS members for the lifetime of the scheme.”

MPS, one of the largest defined benefit pension schemes in the UK, was closed to future accrual in 1994 on the privatisation of the coal industry, meaning all active members became deferred members.​

It has around 7,000 deferred members and 110,000 pensioners in payment and each year pays out around £700m to former mineworkers and their beneficiaries.

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