Category
Category: Pension Basics
Foundational explainers: how UK public sector pensions actually work.
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The triple lock explained: how the State Pension rises, what changes from 2030, and why your public sector pension is different
The triple lock raises the State Pension each April by the highest of earnings growth, inflation or 2.5%. It gives 3.9% in April 2027, and the government plans to change it from April 2030. It…
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Budget 2026 and public sector pensions: what changed for scheme members, and what didn’t
The 28 October 2026 Budget created a Pension Tax Allowance, confirmed lower employer contributions for the public service schemes, changed the triple lock from 2030 and removed the two-year rule on death benefits. What each…
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Opting out of the NHS Pension Scheme: what you give up, and how to rejoin
NHSBSA’s latest figures count 231,000 NHS staff opted out of the pension scheme. What opting out saves, what it gives up, and how the SD502 form, re-enrolment and rejoining work.
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Public service pension increase 2027: the expected 3.5% April rise and who gets it
Public service pensions rise every April by the previous September’s CPI. September 2026’s figure, published on 21 October, is 3.5%, and it sets the April 2027 increase for pensions in payment and deferred pensions. How…
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Civil Service pension contributions 2026/27: the rates, a calculator and what changes in 2027
The Civil Service pension contribution rates for 2026/27: four bands from 4.6% to 8.05%, a calculator, the new lower threshold, the employer rate falling to 22.32% in April 2027, and how pensions will increase.
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The minimum pension age rises to 57 in 2028. Many public sector members keep 55.
The minimum pension age rises from 55 to 57 on 6 April 2028. The Armed Forces, Police and Firefighters’ schemes are exempt, and many Teachers’, Civil Service, NHS and LGPS members may keep 55 under…
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Your State Pension and your scheme pension are taxed as one. From April 2027 that starts to show.
The full new State Pension passes the frozen personal allowance in April 2027, at £13,036.40 a year. The Budget’s new Pension Tax Allowance looks at total income, scheme pensions included, so with a full State…
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No will, no executor, no contact: what happens to a public service pension death benefit
A public service pension scheme does not wait for probate. If nobody administering the estate gets in touch, HMRC’s own guidance says the scheme should identify the beneficiary and pay out without further delay. Here…
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Retiring early from a public service pension: what each scheme actually publishes
Seven public service pension schemes, seven different ways of describing what early retirement costs you. This sets out what each one actually publishes, why the numbers cannot be laid side by side, which schemes have…
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Pension sharing on divorce: how public service pensions are split
If you are a member of the NHS, Teachers’, Civil Service, Armed Forces, Police, Firefighters’ or Local Government scheme and you are divorcing, your pension is a matrimonial asset. This explains the three routes a…