Members Section

This section of the site is intended for scheme members to find out more about the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS), to get scheme information about the LGPS and allow members to view their pension records online.

If you wish to view your pension record you will first of all need to request a PIN, to do this go to the online records page and follow the instructions.

Latest Changes to the LGPS

LGPS (Miscellaneous) Regulations 2010

The LGPS (Miscellaneous) Regulations 2010 were laid before Parliament 25th August 2010 and come into force on 30th September 2010. They make a number of amendments to the LGPS Regulations. Many are minor corrections or updates but there are four major developments. Those major changes are:

• Rejoining deferred members can now aggregate all LGPS deferred benefits not just the membership accrued in their immediately preceding local government employment
• There is a 12 month window for active members to bring in membership they were previously prohibited from aggregating
• Pension credit member benefits are now payable from age 60 with reductions
• There is an early payment option from 55 for suspended Tier 3 Ill-health retirees

Aggregation of deferred benefits

Currently new joiners to the LGPS can only opt to transfer in deferred benefits relating to scheme membership directly preceding the current employment. From 30.09.2010, new joiners can now opt to aggregate all of their previous membership. They have 12 months from joining to initiate the process by requesting an inter fund transfer from the previous fund(s).

Existing members, even those who have previously turned down the opportunity to aggregate on rejoining, will be able to make an option to aggregate up to 30.9.2011. Once this date has passed no new options outside the 12 month limit can be accepted without employer consent.

The benefits of aggregation (bringing all of your previous LGPS membership into your current fund) will depend on a number of factors including your pensionable pay. Information on the factors that a member needs to take into account is available in the document 'Options if you have previous LGPS benefits' (PDF 50KB - opens new window).

Please contact the pensions section as soon as possible if you have deferred benefits you may want to transfer.

Nominated Partner Pension "Buy Back"

Members can now choose to pay Additional Survivor Benefit Contributions (ASBCs), so that any period of their active membership before 6th April 1988 can be taken into account in the calculation of the benefit to be paid to their surviving nominated cohabiting partner.

Members may buy back all their pre 6 April 1988 membership or a number of whole years, not to exceed that period. The buy back is paid for by additional pension contributions and the additional percentage payable for each year bought back depends on the gender of the member and their nominated partner, the member’s age and the number of years over which they elect to pay. This option is time limited and an election must be made before 31st March 2011. Members interested in buying back should contact the LPFA.

Pension credits payable from age 60

This amendment extends the rights of individuals who have been awarded a share of retirement benefit following their divorce from a member of the LGPS.

Previously, pension credits could only be paid to members at their 65th birthday (unless they were suffering from serious ill-health). They are now allowed to take them from age 60 with full actuarial reductions, i.e. a male member taking them at 60 would receive a 24% reduction to his pension and a 12% reduction to any lump sum payable.

Pension credit members are not allowed to commute pension in order to increase their lump sum but may compound trivial pensions.

This regulation has been backdated to 6th April 2009, meaning that pension credit members who reached 60 prior to, or since that date may elect to have their pension put into payment from their 60th birthday, or from 6th April 2009, whichever is the earliest. If this applies to you please contact the pensions section.

Early payment of 3rd Tier Ill Health

A member who has had Tier 3 ill health retirement benefits, which have been suspended on review or after 3 years, is entitled to their retirement pension at age 65. Such members can now access their deferred benefits from age 60 or from age 55 with employer permission. An actuarial reduction will be applied to the benefits in accordance with Government Actuary guidance.

This ensures that members with suspended ill-health benefits are afforded the same capacity for release of those benefits before age 65 as normal deferred members of the Scheme.

This provision is effective from 1st October 2008 which was the end of a period of transitional protection, and provides continuity of rights to members who have left in receipt of the third tier of ill-health benefits from that date.

LGPS (Miscellaneous) Regulations 2009

The LGPS (Miscellaneous) Regulations 2009 came into force at 31st December 2009 and made a number of significant changes to the 2008 Scheme regulations, these key changes are explained below.

Revised Protected Pay Provisions

The Miscellaneous Regulations widen the conditions that allow a member to elect to have his "final pay" for retirement benefit purposes treated as the average of three recent consecutive years. The protection now applies where a member’s pensionable pay in a continuous period of employment is reduced or restricted:

• Because the member chooses to be employed by the same employer at a lower grade or with less responsibility
• For the purposes of achieving equal pay in relation to other employees of that employer
• As a result of a job evaluation exercise
• Because of a change in the member’s contract of employment resulting in the cessation or restriction of, or reduction in, payments or benefits specified in the member’s contract of employment as being pensionable emoluments
• Because the rate at which the member’s rate of pay may be increased is restricted in such a way that it is likely that the rate of the member’s retirement pension will be adversely affected

Where any of the above applies, the member may choose to have his or her "final pay" calculated by dividing by three the member’s total annual pensionable pay in any three consecutive years of the member’s choice, ending with 31st March, within the period of thirteen years ending with the member’s last day as an active member.

For the protection to apply the employment on reduced pay must fall within a period of ten years ending with the member’s last day as an active member. The protection does not apply if the member’s employment on reduced pensionable pay immediately follows a period in which the member occupies a post on a temporary basis at a higher rate of pay.

The relevant provision amends the Benefits Regulations with effect from 1 April 2008 and applies to reductions or restriction of pay effective from that date. Any members who have suffered a reduction or restriction to their pay and are now protected, but were not previously, should take note that they can elect to have their retirement benefits calculated by reference to the average of three recent consecutive year’s pensionable pay, if they retire within ten years of the date of a qualifying reduction.

Under the current protection, employers are not required to issue a certificate of protection as formerly required under the 1997 Regulations. It is the member’s responsibility to keep a record of the reduction and inform the Administering Authority (LPFA) at retirement.

Civil Partner’s Survivor Benefit

The department for Communities and Local Government has decided to place civil partners on a level footing with spouses, so that membership prior to 6 April 1988 is now to be taken into account in the calculation of civil partner’s survivor benefits, at no cost to members.

The relevant provision amends the Benefits Regulations with effect from 1 April 2008 and applies anyone who has been the registered civil partner of an active member since that date. As currently drafted the regulations provide for survivor benefits calculated by reference to all membership in the case of a post retirement Civil Partner registration; it is not known whether the intention is that this should be calculated using post 5 April 88 membership only, as for a post retirement widower’s pension.

Nominated Partner Pension "Buy Back"

Members can now choose to pay Additional Survivor Benefit Contributions (ASBCs), so that any period of their active membership before 6th April 1988 can be taken into account in the calculation of the benefit to be paid to their surviving nominated cohabiting partner.

Members may buy back all their pre 6 April 1988 membership or a number of whole years, not to exceed that period. The buy back is paid for by additional pension contributions and the additional percentage payable for each year bought back depends on the gender of the member and their nominated partner, the member’s age and the number of years over which they elect to pay. This option is time limited and an election must be made before 31st March 2011. Members interested in buying back should contact the LPFA.

Compensation Conversion to Funded Benefits

A new regulation allows employing authorities to convert "compensatory added years" and other forms of annual compensation awarded under former discretionary payment provisions and paid for by the member’s former employer, into funded pension rights provided this is done by 31st March 2012. The amount of any member entitlements will not be affected; they will simply be paid for out of the pension fund in future following a one off payment by the employer to the fund.

Changes to the LGPS

There have been a lot of changes to the LGPS recently and a new scheme has been introduced from 1 April 2008. Information about the changes to the scheme and about the new scheme regulations are available in the sections ‘about the 2008 scheme’, ‘guide to the lgps 2008’ and in the ‘2008 scheme video’. The new scheme applies to individuals who are contributing members of the Local Government Pension Scheme on 1 April 2008 or who have since joined the Scheme. The rights of members who retired before that date with immediate payment of benefits or a preserved pension entitlement are those in force at their date of their retirement

LGPS guide

An online guide to the LGPS is available in this section. This provides basic information about the 2008 scheme - just follow the link to the "guide to the LGPS 2008".

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