UK Stewardship Code
The Stewardship Code 2020 is a voluntary set of principles that sets high expectations for how investors, and those that support them, invest and manage money on behalf of UK savers and pensioners, and how this leads to sustainable benefits for the economy, the environment and society. There are 12 principles for asset owners and asset managers. These principles cover the policies, processes, activities, and outcomes of effective stewardship.
The principles are supported by reporting expectations which indicate the information that organisations should publicly report to become a signatory. The Code has four main sections:
(a) Purpose and Governance
(b) Investment Approach
(c) Engagement
(d) Exercising Rights and Responsibilities.
The Report must be reviewed and approved by the applicant’s governing body, and signed by the Chair, Chief Executive or Chief Investment Officer, or equivalent, before it is submitted for consideration to the FRC. The Staffordshire Pension Fund 2023/24 Stewardship Report was approved by the FRC in February 2025 and the Staffordshire Pension Fund has continued to be an officially a signatory of the UK Stewardship code. The 2024/25 Stewardship Report was approved by the Pensions Committee in September 2025 and will now be submitted to the FRC for approval.
The Fund must report annually to the FRC to maintain signatory status.