The 24 December 2018 was the Scheme’s 100^th birthday, making it one of the longest running trust based pension schemes in the UK.

Modern life bears very little resemblance to how things were in 1918, when the Scheme started. The Great War had just ended, there was no welfare state as we know it today and it would have been inconceivable that a person could ever walk on the moon!

The challenges faced by the Scheme over the years have also changed enormously. Generally, we expect more choice from our pensions and hopefully we expect to live much longer now than we did in 1918. We have also entered a ‘new age of communication’ which involves giving people information at a time and in a way that is convenient for them. The world of investments has changed too, both in terms of choice and risks.

Over these years the various Trustees, as guardians of the Scheme, have done their very best to adapt and to face these challenges. Obvious initiatives include better governance, the use of technology and the diversification of our investment portfolio, which over the last few decades has been more closely aligned to the benefits the Scheme ultimately pays to members.

And of course, one constant has always remained... that the Scheme is there to help you, and yours, find security in your retirement.