The BBC pension scheme has changed the structure of its board, appointing two independent members. The scheme is now recruiting a third independent trustee. The changes take the total number of trustees to 11 from previously nine.
Two former BBC Trust trustees, Bill Matthews and Kevin Carter, were appointed as independent members. A third independent trustee will join in the summer of 2018 and will take over as chair when Bill Matthews, the current chair, retires at the end of December 2018.
Until January 2018 there were four employer-appointed trustees, four member-nominated trustees and one appointed by the BBC Trust. However, as the trust closed in April last year, the structure of the board was reconsidered and the board agreed that from January 2018, it would be expanded to include three independent trustees in addition to the eight appointed by the members and employer.
The BBC’s trustee expansion runs counter to a trend of shrinking board sizes. Between 2014 and 2016 there was a 22 per cent reduction in the number of trustee boards with nine to 11 members, according to PwC research.
