UK -- Lane Clark & Peacock (LCP) has launched two specialist practices, LCP Trustee Consulting and LCP Corporate Consulting, to offer advice to the trustees and corporate sponsors of pension schemes.

The LCP Trustee Consulting practice will focus on providing advice on pensions issues that are of concern to trustees, such as implementing the soon to be introduced pension scheme funding regime, assessing the adequacy of contribution plans, advising on investment issues, and advising on the issues surrounding insolvency and the winding up of pension schemes.

The LCP Corporate Consulting practice will specialise in advising companies on how best to manage the impact of their pension schemes on company finances, how to represent pension schemes in company accounts, ensuring that UK and international benefit plans attract and retain employees effectively, and managing benefit issues in mergers & acquisitions.

This year’s Pensions Act, next year’s introduction of new company accounting rules and a major upturn in the level of corporate M&A activity has created increased demand for specialist actuarial advice, according to LCP.

Having the two separate companies would make it possible to advise the trustees and the corporate plan sponsors at the same time and reduce the potential for conflicts of interest, says Aaron Punwani, head of LCP Trustee Consulting. The corporate consulting practice is run by Alex Waite.