Guidance from bodies representing institutional investors

The Investment Association (IA), Pensions UK (formerly known as the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association or PLSA), PIRC, ISS, Glass Lewis and others all advise institutional investors on corporate governance matters and provide voting guidelines in relation to resolutions at company meetings. 

• Pensions UK: Stewardship and Voting Guidelines 2026 – December 2025
• Glass Lewis; 2026 UK Benchmark Policy Guidelines – December 2025
• FRC: Pre-Emption Group’s Annual Monitoring Report 2024-2025 – December 2025
• ISS: Updated UK and Ireland Proxy Voting Guidelines – November 2025
• PIRC UK Shareowner Voting Guidelines 2025 (These are not available online but can be purchased from PIRC)  
• PLSA: Stewardship and Voting Guidelines – February 2025
• ISS: Uk and Ireland Proxy Voting Guidelines – January 2025
• FRC: Pre-Emption Group’s Annual Monitoring Report  -November 2024
• Glass Lewis: 2025 UK Benchmark Policy Guidelines - November 2024
• IoD: Code of Conduct for Directors – October 2024
• IoD: Code of Conduct for Directors – Consultation paper - June 2024
• ISS: UK Benchmark Proxy Voting Guidelines for 2024 – January 2024
• Glass Lewis ESG Thematic Voting Policy 2024 – January 2024 
• Glass Lewis: 2024 UK Benchmark Policy Guidelines – November 2023
• Corporate Governance Institute Code of Practice for Board Reviewers – July 2023
• Corporate Governance Institute Principles of Good Practice for listed companies using external board reviewers – July 2023
• Corporate Governance Institute Guidance for listed companies on reporting on board performance reviews – July 2023
• Investment Association: Effective requisitioning of shareholder resolutions – Member guidance - June 2023 
• ICGN: Statement on post Covid AGM practices and shareholder rights – April 2023
• Investment Association’s Share Capital Management Guidelines – February 2023
• Investment Association’s Shareholder Priorities for 2023 – February 2023
• FRC: PEG updated Statement of Principles – November 2022

• Glass Lewis: Say on Climate Votes Overview – April 2021
• Investment Association: Good Stewardship Guide 2021 – February 2021
• Glass Lewis: Approach to executive compensation in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic (EMEA region) – January 2021
• Investment Association: Shareholder votes on dividend distributions in UK listed companies – May 2019
• ICGN Global Governance Principles – October 2016
• IBE stakeholder engagement: values, business culture and society – July 2016
• Pre-Emption Group – Statement of Principles on Disapplying Pre-emption Rights – (March 2015)
• IA and ABI Guidelines – available on IVIS website and include guidelines on executive compensation and share based remuneration, corporate governance (board effectiveness, responsible voting, role and duties of directors, the responsibilities of institutional shareholders and Companies Act and articles of association guidance), share capital management (directors’ power to allot shares, own share purchases, scrip dividends, shareholders’ preemption rights and vendor placings), transaction guidelines in relation to equity capital markets transactions and the Preemption Group Guidelines on disapplying preemption rights (Note that the Investment Management Association merged with the ABI's Investment Affairs division in June 2014 and was renamed the Investment Association in January 2015)