In this episode of V-FM, hosts Darren and Nico chat to LCP’s Sam Cobley discussing the role of Collective Defined Contribution (CDC) in the UK pensions system. Sitting between DC and DB, CDC pools members with the aim of delivering a more stable retirement income, but requires savers to give up some of the flexibility offered by DC. The discussion centres on whether the potential income uplift is large enough to justify that trade-off.

Sam challenges some of the more optimistic claims about CDC outcomes, with Nico coining the term “CDC washing” to describe estimates of 50–75% higher incomes based on outdated comparisons with annuity-targeting DC strategies. Sam’s recent analysis suggests a more realistic improvement of around 15–25% compared with modern income-drawdown DC approaches, reflecting how rapidly DC investment strategies have evolved.

The conversation explores how CDC could work in practice from cohorting and buffers, to which retirees it may suit best. While CDC could offer better value for certain cohorts, particularly those seeking income stability, its success will depend on careful design, fair pricing, and how it competes alongside an increasingly sophisticated DC market.

In this episode of V-FM Pensions hosts Darren and Nico chat to Now: Pensions' Samantha Gould. Samantha heads up Now's PR and campaigns and has been particularly vocal in campaigning about pensions inequality.

We explore the structural drivers of the gender pensions gap and the wider challenge of under-pensioned groups. Samantha discusses her campaigning work since the first gender pensions gap report in 2019 (with the Pensions Policy Institute), which has since expanded to identify eight groups most at risk of pension poverty.

A key theme is women’s “squiggly careers”, where time out of the workforce for childcare or elder care, combined with the design of auto enrolment, prevents millions from building adequate pension savings. Samantha argues that reforms such as amending the auto enrolment rules, mandating pension sharing orders in divorce and improving childcare and maternity pension contributions could materially narrow the gap.

The discussion touches on pension dashboards, the balance between income security and access to capital in retirement, and the meaning of value for money. For Samantha, it ultimately comes down to fairness... ensuring the pensions system works for people regardless of gender, background or career path.

In this episode of V-FM Pensions, hosts Darren and Nico take a meander through some recent pension news stories.

The pair discuss:

In this episode of V-FM Pensions, hosts Nico and Darren welcome their first-ever podcast guest back to the show: David Butcher.

They catch up with David to hear how his mindfulness coaching through Positively Aware is going and to get his thoughts on V-FM, trusteeship, and the insight he has gained from recent trustee experiences.

David also shares a brilliant story about gatecrashing a festival… a moment that somehow didn’t make it into his first appearance (and, honestly, the real reason we invited him back...).

And to round things off, David leads listeners through a short meditation at the end of the episode.

In this episode of V-FM Pensions, Darren and Nico chat through their thoughts on the FCA and TPR's latest consultation on value for money (CP 26/1).

In a must listen episode for anyone developing their response to the consultation, the duo's personal thoughts (not those of their employers...) include:

In this episode of V-FM Pensions hosts Darren and Nico chat to Pan Trustees' Nicholas Chadha to explore what value for money means in modern trusteeship.

Nick reflects on his journey from actuarial adviser to professional trustee, and shares insight into schemes at very different ends of the spectrum, from those entering the PPF with recovery plans acting as a drag on sponsors, to schemes managing surplus and difficult decisions around how it should be shared between members and employers.

We discuss the ins and outs of the innovative Aberdeen Stagecoach deal as part of a wider conversation about future options for DB schemes. We also chat about barriers for schemes moving to superfunds and conflicts of interest within professional trustee firms.

Nick makes the case that true value for money isn’t about defaulting to industry orthodoxy... it’s about spending wisely, challenging assumptions, and ultimately improving outcomes for members.

In this episode of VFM Pensions, hosts Nico and Darren are joined by Claire Altman, who leads Standard Life’s work across pensions risk transfer and individual retirement solutions. Claire shares her brilliantly unconventional journey into pensions, from lawyer to trustee to commercial innovator.

We explore what it really means to deliver value for money in retirement, why emotional certainty often matters as much as mathematical optimisation, and how a growing web of regulation is shaping the future of both DB endgames and DC pension outcomes.

In this episode of VFM Pensions, Nico and Darren are joined by "Red" Rory Murphy,  trustee chair, board adviser, pensions commentator and lifelong trade unionist.

Rory brings a refreshingly different perspective to the pensions debate, shaped by decades in the trade union movement and hands-on experience of running smaller schemes.

In a typically wide-ranging conversation we touch on the role of trustees and why they are too cautious when it comes to delivering better outcomes for members. We look at the role of trusteeship in a world dominated by master trusts and professional trustees, the importance of the member voice, and whether fiduciary duty has been interpreted far too narrowly, acting as a barrier to innovation.

At its heart, this episode asks a simple (but maybe) uncomfortable question: who is the pensions system really for and what would it take for trustees to be braver in acting for members?

In this episode of V-FM Pensions, hosts Nico and Darren chat to Kim Gubler. Kim wears many hats in the pensions industry, among them Managing Director of KGC Associates, President of PASA, and is an independent trustee Director of the Smart Pension mastertrust.

Another wide ranging conversation that, as well as talking about horses and pigeons (only on the V-FM podcast....), focuses on the importance of elevating administration to the same level as investments when it comes to assessing value for money, treating it as central to member outcomes rather than something that happens in the background.

We talk about the evolution of KGC, PASA, and problems in relying on SLAs to assess value for money. We also chat about Kim's work on small pots and the recent feasibility study looking at quick ways of addressing what is an increasingly pressing issue.

In this episode of V-FM Pensions, hosts Darren and Nico chat to SuperRatings' Kirby Rappell.

SuperRatings has been conducting value for money assessments in Australia for 17 years, starting out as the first firm dedicated to super fund research.

We hear from Kirby about how the Aussie's do V-FM and look at learnings and insights that could benefit UK thinking.

And we discuss the Pound for Pound initiative that SuperRatings has been leading with a number of large UK schemes.