Pensions UK has shared new technical guidance to support users of the vote reporting template.

Launched in March 2025 in collaboration with the Vote Reporting Group (VRG) established by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the template allows asset owners to collect voting information from their investment managers in a standardised format to understand and engage with how their stewardship strategy is being implemented.

This built on the foundation laid by Pensions UK’s original template, introduced in 2020, and was intended to support improved transparency, consistency and engagement between asset managers and asset owners.

To support this template, Pensions UK has now shared technical guidance providing detailed explanations for each of the fields within the template and clarity on data expectations, formatting, and interpretation.

The guidance is intended to maximise the template’s usability and uptake ahead of the 2025/26 reporting cycle, and reflects recent feedback from across the industry.

The guidance, which is aligned with UK Stewardship Code and the Department for Work and Pensions' (DWP) Implementation Statement requirements, is also designed to recognise the operational realities of vote reporting, including the role of third-party data vendors and proxy voting platforms.

Commenting on the launch of the guidance, Pensions UK executive director of policy and advocacy, Zoe Alexander, said: “Transparency and accountability matter most to asset owners when it comes to stewardship.

“By supporting consistent and high-quality disclosures, this guidance aims to ensure vote reporting becomes a more powerful tool for exercising shareholder rights and ensuring that the nation’s retirement savings are invested effectively and responsibly.”

Adding to this, VRG co-chair, Caroline Escott said: “Voting, alongside thoughtful engagement, is a powerful stewardship tool. I’m therefore delighted to see the launch of the Pensions UK technical guidance, which marks a significant step forward for our industry.

"By supporting managers to provide their pension scheme clients with timely and decision-useful information, this guidance will help asset managers to communicate clearly and consistently to their clients and, ultimately, vote in a way that supports good outcomes for scheme members.”

VRG co-chair, Shipra Gupta, also highlighted the launch of the guidance as an "important milestone for our industry, reflecting a truly collaborative effort shaped by diverse voices across the voting ecosystem".

The guidance was also welcomed by FCA director of sustainable finance, Sacha Sadan, who said: “The FCA welcomes the publication of this technical guidance to support the new vote reporting template, which integrates the VRG's template.

"Voting is an important part of stewardship, and we encourage firms to adopt the template and use it to strengthen transparency and consistency across the investment chain.”

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