SMCR x FSR: Practical insights for leaders

Our new SMCR x FSR monthly webinars is a practical series for senior leaders and control functions. Each month we tackle one core SMCR theme and connect it to what’s changing across FSR right now.

Expect concrete templates, case-based discussion and takeaway checklists to help you demonstrate “reasonable steps” and show your governance working in practice.

Each webinar is a confidential, peer‑to‑peer forum designed to help senior leaders share challenges, compare approaches and build trusted relationships across the industry.

What you can expect

More information on the individual webinairs can be found below:

30 April 2026 - Attestations – Evidence, assurance and avoiding duplication

A practical session on getting attestations right in a changing regulatory landscape

Why now‍

Annual cycles are live, and forthcoming reforms may materially change certification and attestation requirements and practices in future periods. This session will focus on how to approach attestations efficiently and consistently, without unnecessary duplication of effort. Ad hoc attestations are also an increasingly popular regulatory tool.

What you’ll gain

Understand how negotiable the text may (or may not) be;
Accountability and ownership: how to map controls clearly and consistently to attestations
Practical approaches to evidence standards and assurance expectations
A specific: ways to integrate Consumer Duty MI into existing attestation processes
Ideas for streamlining activity across teams and frameworks

Session leads

Chantal Stroker, Partner

James Grieg, Senior Consultant

Who should attend

‍Senior leaders, SMFs, risk, compliance and assurance professionals involved in attestations, certification or Consumer Duty oversight.

If you would like to attend, please contact: tlt.events@tlt.com

21 May 2026 - Deployment of AI – Accountability under SMCR

Who Owns AI? Senior Manager Accountability under SMCR

As firms rapidly deploy AI across operations, financial crime and customer journeys, questions of senior manager accountability are moving from theoretical to enforceable regulatory risk.

The FCA is increasingly focused on who owns AI‑driven decisions, how risks are governed, and whether senior managers can evidence “reasonable steps” where automated systems are in use.

TLT is hosting a focused session on AI Deployment and Accountability under SMCR, exploring how firms can put in place governance frameworks that withstand regulatory scrutiny as AI use scales.

Why this matters now

AI is being embedded into core, regulated decision‑making at pace
Regulatory expectations around senior manager oversight are sharpening
SMCR exposure is crystallising where AI ownership, controls and escalation routes are unclear

What we will cover

How to assign clear and defensible SMF accountability for AI systems
Practical approaches to AI model governance, oversight and challenge
What “reasonable steps” looks like in an AI‑enabled environment
Creating documentation that stands up to audit and FCA scrutiny

Who should attend

Senior Managers responsible for technology, risk, compliance or operations
Legal, compliance and risk professionals advising SMFs
AI, data and model governance leads within regulated firms

The session will draw on TLT’s AI Briefing Paper on SMCR implications, translating regulatory expectations into practical, actionable governance steps.

If you would like to attend, please contact: tlt.events@tlt.com

18 June 2026 - Effective governance – SoRs, RACI and committees that work

Effective Governance – SoRs, RACI and Committees that Work

Governance is not an administrative burden; if done effectively, it is a strategic tool that facilitates decision-making and mitigates risks. For senior managers, it can play a crucial role in demonstrating ‘reasonable steps’.

We are hosting a focused session on Effective Governance – SoRs, RACI and Committees that Work, examining how firms and senior managers can sharpen governance frameworks to meet regulatory expectations and operate effectively in reality, not just on paper.

Why now

Proposed SMCR reforms do not remove the need for clarity on roles, responsibilities and accountability
Regulators remain focused on how accountability works in practice
Pace and scale of regulatory change requires pivoting in decision making
Increase in data driven decision making
Weak structures and MI continue to drive regulatory findings
Regulators continue to hold senior managers to account

What we will cover

Sharpening Statements of Responsibilities and Responsibility Maps to reflect reality
Designing RACI frameworks that support accountability rather than dilute it
The right balance of governance
Effective debate and challenge
Management information that facilitates insight and oversight

The session will combine legal and regulatory insight, with practical experience and lessons learned to help firms strengthen governance in a proportionate and defensible way.