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ACA – Association of Consulting Actuaries

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2026 Essay Competition

International Pensions and Benefits

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PwC Leeds

Company

PwC

Website

Location

Leeds

Address

29 Wellington Street
Leeds
LS1 4DL

Tel

0113 289 4000

Title

Specialisms

Corporate Finance and Risk, Data Analytics, Employee Benefits inc. Flex, Expert Witness, General Insurance, Individual Financial Advice, International Pensions and Benefits, Investment Services, Longevity Consulting, Mergers and Acquisitions, Pension Schemes - design/actuarial work, Pension Transfer or AVC Review, Pensions for Controlling Directors, Personal Financial Planning

Members

1 Full Member

PwC London

Company

PwC

Website

Location

London

Address

7 More London
Riverside
London
SE1 2RT

Tel

020 7583 5000

Title

Specialisms

Corporate Finance and Risk, Data Analytics, Employee Benefits inc. Flex, Expert Witness, General Insurance, Individual Financial Advice, International Pensions and Benefits, Investment Services, Longevity Consulting, Mergers and Acquisitions, Pension Schemes - design/actuarial work, Pension Transfer or AVC Review, Pensions for Controlling Directors, Personal Financial Planning

Members

19 Full Members

PwC London

Company

PwC

Website

Location

London

Address

1 Embankment Place
London
WC2N 6RH

Tel

020 7583 5000

Title

Specialisms

Corporate Finance and Risk, Data Analytics, Employee Benefits inc. Flex, Expert Witness, General Insurance, Individual Financial Advice, International Pensions and Benefits, Investment Services, Longevity Consulting, Mergers and Acquisitions, Pension Schemes - design/actuarial work, Pension Transfer or AVC Review, Pensions for Controlling Directors, Personal Financial Planning

Members

5 Full Members

PwC Manchester

Company

PwC

Website

Location

Manchester

Address

No 1 Spinningfields
Hardman Square
Manchester
M3 3EB

Tel

0161 245 2000

Title

Specialisms

Corporate Finance and Risk, Data Analytics, Employee Benefits inc. Flex, Expert Witness, General Insurance, Individual Financial Advice, International Pensions and Benefits, Investment Services, Longevity Consulting, Mergers and Acquisitions, Pension Schemes - design/actuarial work, Pension Transfer or AVC Review, Pensions for Controlling Directors, Personal Financial Planning

Members

4 Full Members

PwC Reading

Company

PwC

Website

Location

Reading

Address

3 Forbury Place
23 Forbury Road
Reading
Berkshire
RG1 3JH

Tel

0118 959 7111

Title

Specialisms

Corporate Finance and Risk, Data Analytics, Employee Benefits inc. Flex, Expert Witness, General Insurance, Individual Financial Advice, International Pensions and Benefits, Investment Services, Longevity Consulting, Mergers and Acquisitions, Pension Schemes - design/actuarial work, Pension Transfer or AVC Review, Pensions for Controlling Directors, Personal Financial Planning

Members

3 Full Members

Spence & Partners Belfast

Company

Spence & Partners

Website

www.spenceandpartners.co.uk

Location

Belfast

Address

Linen Loft
27-37 Adelaide Street
Belfast
BT2 8FE

Contact

Brian Spence

Tel

028 9041 2000

Title

Spence & Partners Belfast

Email

brian_spence@spenceandpartners.co.uk

Specialisms

Corporate Finance and Risk, Data Analytics, Expert Witness, International Pensions and Benefits, Investment Services, Life Insurance, Mergers and Acquisitions, Pension Scheme Administration, Pension Schemes - design/actuarial work, Pension Transfer or AVC Review, Pensions for Controlling Directors, Trustee Training

Members

13 Full Members

Spence & Partners Glasgow

Company

Spence & Partners

Website

www.spenceandpartners.co.uk

Location

Glasgow

Address

The Culzean Building
36 Renfield Street
Glasgow
G2 1LU

Contact

Alan Collins

Tel

0141 331 1004

Title

Spence & Partners Glasgow

Email

alan_collins@spenceandpartners.co.uk

Specialisms

Corporate Finance and Risk, Data Analytics, Expert Witness, International Pensions and Benefits, Investment Services, Life Insurance, Mergers and Acquisitions, Pension Scheme Administration, Pension Schemes - design/actuarial work, Pension Transfer or AVC Review, Pensions for Controlling Directors, Trustee Training

Members

13 Full Members

Spence & Partners London

Company

Spence & Partners

Website

www.spenceandpartners.co.uk

Location

London

Address

46 New Broad Street
London
EC2M 1JH

Tel

020 7495 5505

Title

Spence & Partners London

Specialisms

Corporate Finance and Risk, Data Analytics, Expert Witness, International Pensions and Benefits, Investment Services, Life Insurance, Mergers and Acquisitions, Pension Scheme Administration, Pension Schemes - design/actuarial work, Pension Transfer or AVC Review, Pensions for Controlling Directors, Trustee Training

Members

13 Full Members

TW Pensions Consulting Billingshurst

Company

TW Pensions Consulting

Website

www.twpensionsconsulting.co.uk

Location

Billingshurst

Address

28 Longhurst Drive
Billingshurst
RH14 9XR

Contact

Tim Webb

Tel

07795 630 039

Title

TW Pensions Consulting Billingshurst

Email

tim.webb@twpensionsconsulting.co.uk

Specialisms

Employee Benefits inc. Flex, Expert Witness, International Pensions and Benefits, Mergers and Acquisitions, Pension Schemes - design/actuarial work

Members

1 Full Member

WTW Leeds

Company

WTW

Website

Location

Leeds

Address

5 Wellington Place
Wellington Street
Leeds
LS1 4AP

Contact

Christopher Gore

Tel

0113 234 3222

Title

Email

christopher.gore@wtwco.com

Specialisms

Corporate Finance and Risk, Employee Benefits inc. Flex, International Pensions and Benefits, Investment Services, Longevity Consulting, Mergers and Acquisitions, Pension Schemes - design/actuarial work, Pensions for Controlling Directors, Trustee Training

Members

24 Full Members

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Latest News

Pranit Nardekar wins ACA Student Essay Prize at Bloomfield Lecture with call for broader view of pension adequacy
5th November 2026
ACA Chair calls for increased minimum auto-enrolment contributions while urging long-term thinking beyond political cycles
1st October 2026
ACA warns minimum pension age transition could leave some savers facing unexpected gaps in retirement income
28th September 2026
ACA welcomes VfM framework but warns it could make poorly governed schemes look better than top-tier schemes
16th September 2026
ACA calls for wider review of s179 valuations as conventional PPF levy remains at zero
14th September 2026

Recent Publications

ACA Survey on new DB Funding Code
1st September 2026
Report maps out pension reform, so lifelong financial independence is secured for all
9th October 2025
ACA 2025 Survey Report – Unlocking DB pension scheme surplus
6th July 2025
ACA publishes Unlocking DB surplus paper
24th February 2025
Placard – our special General Election issue
25th June 2024

Policy & Information

ACA responds to Occupational Pension Schemes (Schemes that were Contracted-out) (No 2) (Amendment) Regulations 2026
26th October 2026
ACA responds to HMRC on Normal Minimum Pension Age Transitional Provisions Regulations
25th September 2026
ACA responds to latest Value for Money Framework consultation
15th September 2026
ACA response on PPF consultation on Assumptions for s179 and s143 valuations
11th September 2026
ACA response to DB pension scheme surplus payments to members consultation
3rd September 2026

Privacy Statement

About
How to Join?
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Find Members
Publications
Consultation Responses
Briefings
2026 Essay Competition

Association of Consulting Actuaries
Second Floor (206)
40 Gracechurch Street
London EC3V 0BT

Tel: 020 3102 6761
Email: acahelp@aca.org.uk

ACA 75th Anniversary ‘Future of Pensions’ Student Essay Competition Rules

The competition rules

Check the rules for writing your essay: subject, format, use of AI, references and reworked writing,
Our eligibility criteria
Plagiarism policy and data protection notice

Subject

We are looking for essays of no more than 1,500 words on exploring innovative ideas to improve the provision, public understanding and take-up of longer-term and shorter-term pension and savings and/or overall savings adequacy at all levels of UK society. This must be presented in writing although entrants can support their essay with a video if they so wish.

The winner of the Essay Prize will receive an award of £3,000 and the two runners-up will receive awards of £1,500 each. The Winners will have the opportunity to present their entries at the ACA Bloomfield Lecture being held on 3 November 2026 at a central London venue.

The winning essay submission also will be published in The Actuary journal, alongside articles from leading writers working in the insurance, savings and pension industries from across the world.

Format

Your essay must be:

Your individual work.
Papers written for courses are eligible, but all papers must be the original, unpublished work of the individual student.
Submitted in Microsoft Word or PDF in English and can be supported by visual elements which will not go towards the word count.
- Any visual material in your essay (e.g. photographs, PowerPoint or Excel charts) must be fully embedded within your Word or PDF document; do not include embedded objects that rely on external source files.
- Text-based hyperlinks are permitted.
Entries must be submitted online through the essay competition email, which will be open from 30 March 12:00 am to 30 June 11:59 pm. Late submissions will not be accepted.
Submitted with an application form.
Submitted without your name on the essay document.
All pages must be typed and include the title of the essay and page numbers.
Double line spacing.
Submissions will be judged anonymously so please do not include any personally identifying information (name, university) in the essay document.
A maximum of 1,500 words.

The prize winners may be requested to grant permission for the ACA to have the right to publish or reproduce at any time all or part of the award-winning entries.

Your word count:

Must be included at the foot of the essay.
Includes the main body of the essay and annexes.
Excludes the title and footnotes (for example citations and brief references to other research).
Footnotes to be no more than 25 words each.

Use of generative AI tools: your essay must be your sole creation and original work. AI may be used for research, proofreading and checking spelling and grammar. If an entrant chooses to use generative AI, the entrant is responsible for checking the accuracy of the output. Entrants are not permitted to use any AI programme to write all or part of an essay to enter this competition. Any essay which has been written, in part or in whole, by ChatGPT or similar programmes will be excluded from the marking and judging process and ineligible. The view of the judges will be final.

References should be inserted using the Harvard style referencing system.

Reworked coursework, journals or articles: each essay must be an original piece of work written by the entrant for the competition without peer review or editing by anyone else. All essays must be the individual unpublished work of the entrant.

Eligibility criteria

When the essay is submitted and at the date of the close of the competition, you must satisfy the following criteria:

The competition is open to all undergraduate and graduate students who, at the time of entry, are enrolled full- or part-time at an UK accredited, degree-granting institution of higher education seeking an undergraduate (two-, three- or four-year) or graduate degree.
Students may be enrolled in any discipline. Students enrolled in life science, physical science, social science, health, actuarial or mathematics courses are especially encouraged to participate.
Students may be enrolled in any UK accredited college or university.
We will only transfer the prize money to you if you are successful once confirmation of your eligibility to enter the competition has been received from one of the UK academic institutions (see 1 above).

The administration team and the judges have the final decision as to whether an essay is eligible. No correspondence will be entered into.

Judging

Essays will be evaluated for:

Clarity
Analysis and reasoning
Originality and creativity
Compliance with competition requirements

Judges for the competition will be drawn from senior professionals, academics and commentators working in the pensions and savings world.

Plagiarism policy

The essay must be the sole creation and original work of the entrant. Entrants are expected already to be aware of and to follow any plagiarism guidance and policies of the academic and professional training institutions to which they currently belong or have belonged. The ACA guidance reproduces and adapts information from other such policies for the purposes of its Essay Competition. The ACA is grateful to both institutions for permission to do so.

Plagiarism occurs where an entrant copies from any other source (published or unpublished) in an unauthorised manner and attempts to present that work as if it were the entrant’s own in order to obtain an unfair advantage.

Examples of plagiarism include:

Submitting someone else’s work as your own.
Copying words or ideas from someone else without giving credit.
Failing to put a quotation in quotation marks.
Giving misleading information about the source of a quotation.
Changing words but copying the sentence structure of a source without giving credit.
Copying so many words from a source that it makes up the majority of your work, whether you give credit or not.

Quotations from recognised sources are usually acceptable but must be clearly acknowledged and a reference given for the source (i.e. sources must be cited). The following situations almost always require citation:

Whenever you use quotes.
Whenever you paraphrase.
Whenever you use an idea that someone else has already expressed.
Whenever you make specific reference to the work of another.
Whenever someone else’s work has been critical in developing your own ideas.

In the case of any doubt, citation is recommended.

The ACA may proactively seek out instances of plagiarism, for example by the use of an electronic plagiarism detection system or service to scan submitted essays.

Any entry which is found not to be the sole creation and original work of the entrant (“plagiarism”) will be disqualified from the 75^th Anniversary ‘Future of Pensions’ Essay Competition.

Data protection notice

Our purposes for processing your data: we will process your personal data for the purposes of administering this essay competition and (in the case of successful entrants) publicising and promoting future such competitions. Our lawful basis for this processing data is ‘legitimate interests’ on the basis that individuals would have a reasonable expectation that we will process the personal data they have provided, which include the provision of initiatives to support education and training and to promote innovation in actuarial and related fields. Please go to our privacy statement for more details.

Association of Consulting Actuaries
Second Floor (206) • 40 Gracechurch Street • London EC3V 0BT
Tel: 020 3102 6763 • www.aca.org.uk • david.robertson@aca.org.uk

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