Why Choose WBR Actuarial?
Meet our Chartered Actuaries
Our team of Chartered Actuaries combines in-depth experience with practical, hands-on expertise. Servicing the whole of the UK, they support clients to make confident decisions through clarity of advice.
David Downie
Chief Actuarial Officer
David Downie
Chief Actuarial Officer
David left the sunny shores of Trinidad on a scholarship to pursue his education in the UK. He qualified as a Fellow of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries and has accrued over 30 years of experience in Pensions & Actuarial Consultancy and holds the Scheme Actuary certificate.
A pioneer, he developed the defined benefit small self-administered scheme and designed and created WBR’s DB SSAS which has proved a very successful alternative to a traditional SSAS given the right circumstances. David also gives time to many pension and actuarial industry committees and working parties. He advises Trustee Boards of larger corporate pension schemes and funeral plan trusts and assists solicitors when pension splitting on divorce is required, including providing independent expert reports for the courts.
David continues to support the Soca-Warriors the T&T national football team and with his wife has set up a small Christian charity – Advent Worldwide – to provide financial help with gifts of love and compassion to individuals and for ministry training.
Gail Higgins
Director and Actuary
Gail Higgins
Director and Actuary
Gail Higgins read Mathematics at the University of Oxford and qualified as an Actuary in 1990. She moved to Salisbury in 1982, for work, and liked the city so much that she is still there! Having worked for two other pension consultancies Gail founded Censeo at the end of 2004 as a means of providing a high-quality, tailored and independent service to defined benefit pension schemes.
Gail has held a Scheme Actuary practising certificate continuously since they were introduced in 1997. She has spoken at conferences in London and Amsterdam, represented smaller firms at the Association of Consulting Actuaries and volunteered her time for the Institute & Faculty of Actuaries in a number of roles.
She believes in being accessible to, and in communicating effectively with, Clients in order to demolish the “ivory tower” so often associated with her profession. When she’s not working, you’ll probably find her singing!
Alan Finch
Director of Actuarial
Alan Finch
Director of Actuarial
Alan is Director of Actuarial at WBR Group, and has over 20 years Financial Services experience, including 8 years in the Wealth Management Division of Barclays.
He is a Fellow of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries, holds a Scheme Actuary practising certificate and is Scheme Actuary to a number of Final Salary schemes.
In addition to this, Alan is a member of IFOA’s Pensions Consultations subcommittee, the ACA’s Consultation Subcommittee and the ACA’s Tax Subcommittee.
Alan has also served as honorary Secretary of the Association of Member-Directed Pension Schemes (AMPS).
Matthew Hill
Senior Actuary
Matthew Hill
Senior Actuary
Matthew is a Senior Actuary at WBR Actuarial with over 25 years of experience in pensions and investments. He is a Fellow of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA) and a Chartered Actuary. Since 2017, Matthew has served as a Senior Quality Assurance Representative for the IFoA’s Quality Assurance Scheme.
Matthew’s expertise encompasses a wide range of Defined Benefit pension schemes, including traditional Trustee work, assisting Trustees with the buy-in process, providing strategic investment advice (including journey plans), and company accounting.
Beyond his professional achievements, Matthew enjoys sailing, running, and playing chess.
Arti Kakkad
Actuarial Consultant
Arti Kakkad
Actuarial Consultant
Arti is a Fellow of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA) and a Chartered Actuary with over 17 years of experience in the pensions industry. She began her career in Defined Benefit (DB) pensions in 2007 and has since developed a wealth of expertise in both consultancy and public sector pensions.
At Willis Towers Watson, where she worked in both their London and Lisbon offices, her work in consultancy focused on delivering complex pension solutions for a diverse range of clients, helping them navigate the challenges of pension scheme management.
Having transitioned into the public sector working for the Government Actuary’s Department, Arti worked on shaping pensions policy and strategies within the public sector space. She has worked on the State Pension Age working party for the IFoA, shaping advice to the Government on the impact of varying state pension age. In her role at WBR Actuarial she will support clients through their DB pension management.
In addition to her actuarial qualifications, Arti is a qualified coach and is passionate about promoting good mental health in the workplace. She actively supports organizations in creating healthier work environments, fostering well-being, and encouraging a positive work culture.
Supporting Our Actuarial Team
Our team is made up of nine dedicated professionals based in the WBR Group office in Salisbury. We are united by a shared commitment to the highest standards of integrity, expertise, and clear communication in everything we do.
At WBR Group, we are proud to foster a culture that values Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. These principles guide both our recruitment and professional development, ensuring every employee feels respected, supported, and empowered to reach their full potential.
We’re passionate about nurturing talent from within. That’s why we offer a generous and fully supported study package for team members working towards their actuarial qualifications. This includes comprehensive study leave, access to leading courses, and clear incentives for exam success.
Projects WBR Actuarial have recently been involved in include:
- Developed a model and produced the IFRS17 disclosures for a Funeral Plan company. This was the first year that the company was subject to the disclosures. The work included allowing for the reinsurance contracts that were in place and proposing assumptions including the risk adjustment.
- Creating a unique solution for a large DC corporate pension scheme to convert to a SSAS and retain its existing investments which would have otherwise been subject to the Employer Related Investment restrictions.
- Guiding a Board of Trustees of a Final Salary Scheme through the journey of appropriate investment consultancy advice over a period of time which enabled the Scheme to implement a full Buy In of all benefits with a suitable Insurance Company.
- Completed a GMP conversion equalisation exercise for a Final Salary Scheme along with simplifying the benefits of the scheme to permit easier future administration of the pension benefits for the members of the Scheme.
- Advised a defined benefit scheme client regarding the breaking of an ongoing salary link, with appropriate compensation for affected members, to enable to the scheme to prepare for a buy-in insurance transaction.
- Another defined benefit scheme client was involved in a corporate transaction, as part of which the vendor wanted to be released from the parental guarantee put in place some years earlier. We helped the trustees to negotiate a substantial contribution into the pension scheme, in lieu of the guarantee, which has put the scheme into a position where it can afford to secure all its liabilities with an insurer.
