LGPS Central unifies voting process and gains "significant influence" over stewardship

LGPS Central has cast its first votes using pass-through voting — an important moment in a broader strategy to strengthen stewardship across its portfolio.

The company announced in January that it would be overseeing more than £43 billion in assets on behalf of its eight Partner Funds, following a new agreement to provide oversight and stewardship for over £11 billion in passive equity funds managed by Legal & General. These funds were previously overseen directly by individual Partner Funds.

Under this new arrangement, LGPS Central will vote the underlying holdings in listed equity funds in line with its own Voting Principles. This represents a step change in how voting power is exercised at scale. Cheshire Pension Fund described the pass-through voting mechanism as “particularly innovative”, granting LGPS Central “significant influence” by unifying the stewardship approach across all Partner Funds.

Richard Law-Deeks, CEO of LGPS Central, said the collaboration "sets a benchmark for stewardship and cost-effective management. It amplifies [their] impact and ensures a unified approach to governance across all Partner Funds”.

This move highlights the growing demand for transparent, active stewardship – even within passively managed strategies.

Read LGPS Central's press statement here.