Local Government Pensions Scheme in England and Wales - Scheme Improvements (Access and Protections)

82. To clarify which employers the strengthened Fair Deal protections will apply to, the draft regulations define a new type of Scheme employer, a ‘Fair Deal employer’. In effect, these employers are to be viewed as the deemed employer of protected transferees (those to whom the New Fair Deal protections will apply). For those individuals who have been transferred to service providers, the deemed employer mechanism means that for various purposes and functions, the Fair Deal employer (and not their outsourced employer – “relevant contractor”) will be deemed to be their employer. Further information on that split of responsibilities is in the “Responsibilities for relevant contractors” section. 

83. In the 2019 consultation, it was proposed that all LGPS Scheme employers would become Fair Deal employers, except for: 

• further education corporations, sixth form college corporations and higher education corporations (i.e. post-1992 universities), and 

• admission bodies. 

84. These employers were omitted from the Fair Deal employer definition as at the time of consultation they were not classified as public sector bodies.  

85. However, in November 2022, further education colleges, sixth form colleges and designated institutions in England were reclassified by the Office of National Statistics as being part of the central government sector (16). Therefore, it is now proposed that they should be in scope of these proposals and included in the definition of a Fair Deal employer, whilst higher education corporations and admission bodies remain as non-public sector bodies and therefore out of scope.