The Pensions Administration Standards Association (PASA), has revised its standards to simplify the initial stages of accreditation.

The changes include making what administrators need to do to become accredited clearer and working with an auditor to ensure the changes are workable.

Kim Gubler, director at PASA and chair of the standards and accreditation committee said the revisions were a logical next step.

She said: "Our administration standards have been in place since 2012 and, just like the wider, evolving world of pensions, PASA doesn't stand still.

"Good governance requires that we continually assess how we are doing things and make sure the advice and guidance we are giving to market is current and appropriate."

Additional motivation for the update came from both the number of organisations seeking accreditation and further guidance from The Pensions Regulator.

"There has been an upward trend in organisations seeking accreditation recently and this is further enhanced by the latest Guide to Administration that was issued alongside the DC Code of Practice no.13 by The Pensions Regulator," said Gubler.

"Within that code of practice, schemes are urged to seek to work with advisers that have independent voluntary accreditation from organisations such as PASA."

As part of the update, the standards and accreditation subcommittee reviewed each of the standards to assess whether the changes over the last four years have impacted the practical application of the standards themselves.

One of the key elements of the review was to clarify aspects of what administrators need to do to become PASA Accredited to make it more straightforward for administrators to achieve the PASA gold stamp.

The organisation also worked in close partnership with accreditation auditor RSM, to ensure all changes remain workable and relevant.

Gubler said: "Ensuring the standards are delivering to the high level the industry expects remains our main aim and we will continuously work to enhance and improve what we do.

"It is very encouraging to see continued emphasis on good quality administration being evidenced by TPR and the market at large."

First published 13.05.2015

Lindsay.sharman@wilmingtonplc.com