Professional and Regulatory Support Helpdesk – Pensions Panel member

Application closing date: 31 May 

We are seeking qualified members of the IFoA, particularly with experience in the pensions industry in the UK and/or internationally, to join this Helpdesk panel and contribute their expertise in supporting this important service.

The IFoA’s Professional and Regulatory Support Helpdesk is a free, confidential service available to members worldwide. It provides a safe and trusted space for members to seek guidance on standards, ethical judgement and regulatory expectations, drawing on the experience of qualified IFoA actuaries.

 

What’s involved

As a Helpdesk panel member, you will help shape responses to member queries by drawing on your professional expertise and judgement. Queries span a range of practice areas, including pensions, life insurance and general insurance, with a dedicated focus on professionalism and ethics.

Panel members collaborate to provide:

  • Clear, balanced guidance grounded in professional standards
  • Insight into ethical and regulatory challenges faced in real-world situations
  • Support that is timely, consistent and proportionate

Responses are developed alongside colleagues from the IFoA Executive Team, helping to ensure alignment with the wider regulatory framework.

Members can raise queries on:

  • The Actuaries’ Code
  • Actuarial Profession Standards (APSs) and related guidance
  • Technical Actuarial Standards (TASs) issued by the Financial Reporting Council
  • Ethical dilemmas encountered in actuarial work

(While TASs are set by the FRC, the Helpdesk responses reflect the views of experienced IFoA members and rather than the FRC itself.)

 

The impact you’ll have

Your contribution will help members:

  • Navigate complex or high pressure situations with greater confidence
  • Understand how standards apply in practice
  • Make well informed professional decisions that uphold trust in the profession

 

What members value

Members who use the Helpdesk consistently highlight the reassurance gained from an independent, objective perspective. Feedback indicates that the service helps members sense-check their initial assessments, provides constructive challenge where appropriate, and supports confidence in reaching well-considered decisions. 

Time commitment

Involvement is ad hoc, with queries shared across the relevant panels as they arise. Pensions panel volumes are generally low, and the time commitment is typically a few hours per year, although this may vary.

We offer a variety of ways for members to receive a response, so panel members may be asked to participate in telephone calls as well as contributing to written responses.

 

Get involved

Joining the panel offers a valuable opportunity to contribute your professional expertise, support fellow actuaries, and help uphold high standards across the profession, while gaining exposure to a wide range of real-world issues and judgement-based scenarios.

Next steps

If you are interested in this role and would like an informal conversation before applying, please email us at engagement.team@actuaries.org.uk.

If you have read all the above and would like to apply, please send us:

  • brief details of your relevant experience
  • your reasons for wishing to get involved
  • your ARN
  • confirmation that you have read, understood, and agree to the information and requirements laid out in our volunteer information pack (please be aware that until we have received this confirmation, we will not be able to appoint you as a volunteer)

Please email all the above to engagement.team@actuaries.org.uk. Please note, we are unable to accept late applications.

We are committed to promoting diversity, equality of opportunity, and inclusion, within all our vacancies and we actively encourage applications from a diverse range of potential candidates. Recognising and embracing the unique and diverse talents of our volunteers is fundamental to the success of our organisation.

What you need to know

Volunteering provides you with a wide range of opportunities. With all rights and opportunities come responsibilities and we ask all our volunteers to comply with the terms of the IFoA’s governance manual and volunteer information pack. Before offering to provide support, please read through: what you need to know.