The review undertaken in response to the court cases of McCloud and Sargeant has resulted in primary legislation. These court cases identified discrimination based on age within the Teachers’ Pension Scheme following the move from the Final Salary arrangement to the Career Average arrangement.
In February 2021, HM Treasury announced a commitment to bring forward primary legislation, and on July 19th 2021, the government introduced the Public Service Pensions and Judicial Offices Bill.
What does this mean for you?
While the bill is quite detailed, three main elements that may impact you are your pension.
- Eligible members will have a choice of the benefits they wish to take within the remedy period of April 1st 2015, and March 31st 2022.
- This remedy period ends on April 1st 2022, and all members of the Teachers Pension Scheme will be members of the Career Average arrangement. From this point, all members will be assured of equal treatment.
- There are no reductions to members benefits as a result of the 2016 cost control valuations.
The Teachers’ Pension Scheme and other public service schemes are now working to implement these changes. The hope is that all members will feel more certain of their benefit entitlements and receive guaranteed benefits.
What now?
The consequences of this legislation are complex, and it is difficult in this short summary to capture what the changes mean for you. You can visit My Pension Online to review your benefit statement. Alternatively, you should consider talking with an independent advisor who can explore your personal circumstances in more detail.
The content in this article was correct on August 16th 2021. You should not rely on this article to make important financial decisions. Teachers Financial Planning offers advice on pensions for teachers and non-teachers. Please use the contact form below to arrange an informal chat with an advisor and see how we can help you.