Head of Pensions - Public Markets

There has never been a more exciting time to join Wirral Council. We’ve got ambitious targets to meet and to achieve everything we have promised to our residents; we need people who are ready to deliver the very best for our communities and show how they can #BeTheDifference. Our vision is to secure the best possible future for our residents, defined by the community prosperity we create and supported by our excellent people and services. If you strive to #BeTheDifference and want to be at the heart of our change and improvement journey, then this could be the perfect job for you.

The successful candidate will work for the Local Government Pension Scheme at Merseyside Pension Fund which is administered by Wirral Council and based in Liverpool City Centre.

Merseyside Pension Fund (MPF) is part of the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) and is one of the largest local government pension funds in the UK with assets more than £10bn.

The Fund is a contributory defined benefit pension scheme and is administrated by Wirral Council to provide pensions and other benefits for pensionable employees of over 200 employers, including the Merseyside Local Authorities and a range of other employing bodies.

Head of Pensions – Public Markets

About the role:

You will assist the Director of Pensions in the provision of a high-performing, well-managed investment management service and responsible for the strategic oversight of Merseyside Pension Fund’s (MPF) public market portfolios and the management and supervision of the public markets team.

In the light of the government’s pension reforms and LGPS pooling requirements, MPF is poised to face both challenges and opportunities that demand enhanced in-house capabilities. A strategic recruitment drive is intended to strengthen our internal investment team, reduce reliance on external investment managers and support the development of an FCA authorised investment company in collaboration with our pooling partner funds. Recruiting to these roles will support talent retention by providing career progression opportunities and better alignment with our Pool partners. 

About the candidate:

We are looking for someone who has an investment management qualification e.g. Investment Management Certificate, Chartered Financial Analyst or equivalent and who has strong mathematical, financial or accounting and analytical skills.

The successful candidate will have experience of working within a Pensions Fund or similar institutional environment. You will have experience of managing investment portfolios, research analysis and evaluation and providing financial information to stakeholders.

If you wish to discuss this role or require further information, please contact Adil Manzoor, Head of Pensions (Private Markets) on email  adilmanzoor@wirral.gov.uk

‘As part of the Northern LGPS Pool, MPF currently operates within a joint committee structure. However, following the Fit for Future consultation issued in November 2024, it is anticipated that the Pool will transition to an FCA-regulated entity, operating independently from its partner pension funds. Consequently, once established, the MPF investment team is expected to transfer to this newly regulated entity under TUPE regulations.’

If you are a Wirral resident, are unemployed or out of work, and require help with your application, please contact Involve Northwest’s employment and skills team on info@involvenorthwest.org.uk or contact 0151 644 4500 or 0151 652 4349.

If you’re already a Wirral Council employee, as part of our Talent Strategy, we’re committed to strengthening opportunities for our people to learn, grow, progress, and thrive. For many of you, this may be preparing and applying for your next role with us, and we're passionate about ensuring you feel supported throughout your internal recruitment experience. Please get in touch if you want to know more about some of the ways in which we could support you by emailing recruitment@wirral.gov.uk

Working at Wirral

You’ll also want to know what it’s like to work here so, as a start:

Our values are more than just pieces of paper on our walls! We’ve all played a role in developing these, so they reflect the immense pride we have in what we do, what matters to us, what inspires us and inform how we think, approach things, and behave.

We believe in ensuring staff are well looked after, staff wellbeing is a priority for us. We’re serious about recognising and rewarding people for the great things they do. You’ll benefit from our track record of developing, growing, and investing in our people.

We have a range of staff benefits including staff discounts, an excellent pension scheme which includes a generous employer contribution rate, immediate life cover and ill-health protection. We have a strong flexible working approach, hybrid working, family-friendly employment initiatives and an annual leave package starting with 28 days leave plus public holidays.

We have an inclusive, engaged culture, everyone has a voice, everyone is valued for their contribution and understands the role they play in delivering our strategic priorities.

Each voice is heard, each contribution valued. We embrace diversity in our workforce and recognise it is critical to our success. We support an inclusive culture that champions difference and nurtures a sense of belonging. We encourage people from diverse backgrounds, who share our values and our commitment to inclusion to apply for roles with us.

We want you to be your best at work, we create the conditions to help you thrive and we mirror this in our recruitment process. If you’d like us to do anything differently during the recruitment process to make it barrier-free and as accessible as possible, please contact recruitment@wirral.gov.uk

^{Please note that in accordance with the Council’s policy, employees who are in a formal redeployment situation will be considered in the first instance for all vacancies.}

^{It is Council policy not to re-appoint any employee who has left under the terms of the Council's Early Voluntary Retirement (EVR) scheme or who have left with a voluntary severance (VS) package, unless in exceptional circumstances.}

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