UK - The £720m (€822m) Northumberland County Council Pension Fund has appointed Northern Trust to a £40m transition management mandate, adding to the list of services the company already provides to the scheme.

It currently oversees custody, as well as securities lending services for the local government scheme, and is in charge of commission recapture.

The scheme, which has worked with Northern Trust for the past decade, cited its existing relationship with the provider as one of the reasons it was appointed.

Derek Kennedy, chairman of the pension fund panel, added: "We see an increasing demand from local government pension schemes, such as Northumberland County Council, for our transition management services, and we are pleased to support their requirements."

In other news, the £320m London Borough of Havering Pension Fund is looking to appoint a new investment adviser for five years.

The contract, valued at as much as £540,000, could be renewed for a further two years upon satisfactory completion.

The adviser would be in charge of areas such as setting investment strategy, as well as appointing asset managers and setting corporate governance and socially responsible investment policies.

Interested parties have until 19 September to apply.

Finally, the two pension schemes for employees of Birmingham Airport are tendering for a provider of actuarial services and administration.

The tender, made on behalf of both the £8m defined benefit scheme and the airport's defined contribution fund, also asks the provider monitor payroll and handle transfer out quotations.

The airport's DB scheme, which reported a deficit of £20m at the end of the most recent financial year, last year launched a consultation to close to new accrual, but instead decided to continue at a lower accrual rate for the fire fighters employed.

Interested parties have until 15 September to apply for the contract valued at £500,000.