Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Key definition

Consultation definition

What does Consultation mean? In pensions practice, consultation is the employer’s statutory duty to consult affected members or their representatives before implementing material changes to an occupational pension scheme. In England & Wales and Scotland this duty is set out in the Occupational and Personal Pension Schemes (Consultation by Employers and Miscellaneous Amendment) Regulations 2006, made under the Pensions Act 2004, with corresponding regulations in Northern Ireland and oversight by The Pensions Regulator (TPR). The duty typically applies to employers with at least 50 employees and requires at least 60 days’ consultation with active and prospective members (or recognised unions), providing sufficient written...

Consultation by Public Bodies: Duties, Legitimate Expectations and the Gunning Principles—Trigger, Scope, Process, Re‑consultation and Cabinet Office Guidance

Published by a LexisNexis Public Law expert

Practice notes

When a public body undertakes Consultation on a prospective decision, it should do so while the plans are still genuinely provisional, provide sufficient material, and allow enough time for a meaningful, informed reply, so that feedback is considered with an open mind, and to ensure decision-makers approach the feedback without predetermination. The legal requirements for consultation, first articulated in R v Brent London Borough Council ex parte Gunning, were firmly endorsed by the Supreme Court in Moseley, within the context of a statutory obligation on a local Authority to consult.

How and when does the duty to consult arise?

No general, universal obligation compels public authorities to consult those impacted by their choices; the requirement may be imposed by statute, or may arise in public law either from the duty to act fairly, or because a legitimate expectation has been created. Simply describing an exercise as 'consultation' does not of itself generate a duty to consult, since whether an engagement attracts legal obligations is a matter of substance, not form (R (Eveleigh) v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions). The Administrative Court summarised when consultation is required, in R (Plantagenet Alliance Ltd.) v Secretary of...

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Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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