Absences
Absence from work
There may be times when you are not at work or are unable to work. Here you can find out how the pension you build up in the LGPS could be affected if you are away from work:
Sick leave
If you are off work due to sickness or injury and your contractual pay is reduced or you don’t receive any pay then the pensionable pay figure used to work out your pension for this period is your assumed pensionable pay. Using your assumed pensionable pay, rather than the amount of pensionable pay you actually receive when on sick leave, means that you will continue to build up a pension in the section of the LGPS you are in, as if you were working normally and receiving pay.
You will continue to pay your basic LGPS contributions on any pay that you receive while you are off sick (before any reduction on account of Statutory Sick Pay or Incapacity Benefit). If you are on unpaid sick leave, you will not pay any contributions.
If you are in the 50/50 section and go on to unpaid sick leave, you will automatically be moved to the main section of the Scheme from the beginning of the next pay period if you are still on no pay at that time. This means from that point forward you will build up full pension benefits in the LGPS even though you are not paying pension contributions.
Maternity or adoption leave
During any period of relevant child related leave the pensionable pay figure used to work out your pension is your assumed pensionable pay. Using your assumed pensionable pay, rather than the amount of pensionable pay you actually receive when on relevant child related leave, means that you will continue to build up a pension in the section of the LGPS you are in, as if you were working normally and receiving pay.
You will continue to pay your basic LGPS contributions on any pay that you receive while you are off on relevant child related leave.
However, any period of unpaid additional maternity or adoption leave will not count for pension purposes unless you elect to pay additional pension contributions (APCs) to purchase the amount of pension 'lost' during that period of unpaid absence.
See the online calculator and application forms.
Paternity leave
Statutory Paternity Leave of two weeks is granted for the purposes of caring for a child or for the child’s mother. If you are granted additional paternity leave you will continue to pay pension contributions on any pay you receive during this period.
However, any period of unpaid additional paternity leave will not count for pension purposes unless you elect to pay additional pension contributions (APCs).
See the online calculator and application forms.
Parental leave
You can, with your employer’s agreement, take unpaid parental leave. If you want this period to count for pension purposes you will have to pay additional pension contributions (APCs).
See the online calculator and application forms.
Industrial dispute – strike break
If you are absent for a day or more due to a trade dispute the period will not count for pension purposes unless you elect to pay additional pension contributions (APCs) to purchase the amount of pension 'lost' during that period of absence.
See the online calculator and application forms.
For further information on how going on strike may affect your pension, please see the frequently asked questions available on the national LGPS website for members.
Reserve forces leave
If you are on reserve forces service leave and elect to remain in the LGPS your pension in the scheme will be worked out using your assumed pensionable pay. Using your assumed pensionable pay ensures that you will continue to build up pension as if you were in work rather than on reserve forces service leave. Any pay you do receive from your employer will not have pension contributions deducted from it.
If you go on reserve forces service leave and elect to stay in the LGPS your employer needs to tell you the amount of basic pension contributions you and the Ministry of Defence (MoD) must pay, the amount of any additional contributions you are paying in the LGPS, and the amount of assumed pensionable pay those contributions must be collected on. You will need to pass this information on to the MoD. Your employee contributions (and any additional contributions you are paying in the LGPS) will be deducted by the MoD and paid across to Staffordshire Pension Fund.
Authorised Leave of Absence
There may be other times where your employer may allow you to take a period of unpaid leave e.g. authorised absence, jury service on no pay, volunteering, work break. The period of the absence will not count for pension purposes unless you elect to pay Additional Pension Contributions to buy the pension you ‘lost’ during the absence.
See the online calculator and application forms.
Fostering Leave
Your employer may support paid time off if you undertake a role as a foster carer. You will continue to pay pension contributions on any pay you receive. If these days are at full pay or pro rata equivalent, the amount of pension you build up will not be affected. However, for longer term placements, your contractual pay may be reduced for part of the leave taken. As the pension you build up is based on your cumulative pensionable pay, the lower pay received will marginally reduce the amount of pension you build up.
You can elect to pay Additional Pension Contributions to buy back any 'lost' pension for the time when your pay is reduced.
See the online calculator and application forms.
Additional Annual Leave Purchase
Many of our Scheme Employers operate an annual leave purchase scheme (also known as a holiday buy back scheme) which allows you to buy additional hours of leave to increase your existing annual leave entitlement.
The purchase of additional annual leave is treated as authorised unpaid leave and therefore pension contributions will not automatically be paid. As a result, your pension benefits will be affected by the reduced pensionable pay*. However, you can elect to pay Additional Pension Contributions to buy back the ‘lost’ pension.
See the online calculator and application forms.
* please check with your employer on how the deductions for additional leave purchased will be taken from your salary. If the scheme works through a ‘salary sacrifice’ arrangement, this could also impact the final pay calculation if you have pre 1 April 2014 (final salary) membership and the additional leave purchased falls within the final pay period.
An online calculator is now available on the National LGPS member website to show how much it will cost for you to make up the 'lost' pension.
To use the calculator you will need information about your 'lost' pay during your absence. You may need to ask your employer for this information.
For an authorised absence or unpaid child related leave, if you make an election to purchase lost pension within 30 days of returning to work (or such longer period as your employer may allow), your employer must contribute 2/3rds of the cost. However, if an election to buy back lost pension is made more than 30 days after you return to work and your employer does not extend this period, the cost of buying this lost pension would be met fully by you.
Note: where you are buying lost pension due to a trade dispute, the full cost of purchasing the amount of lost pension for the period of the absence would always be met fully by you (unless your employer voluntarily chooses to contribute towards the cost).
Only active members can elect to buy lost or extra pension. In the case of buying lost pension, if you will not be returning to work after a period of authorised leave of absence or unpaid child-related leave, an election to pay APCs must be made whilst you remain an active member of the scheme.
If you wish to proceed with paying APCs to increase your pension, you should complete the quotation from the 'Buy lost pension calculator' and print off the details. You should also complete page 1 of Staffordshire Pension Fund's application form below and then forward the form and the quotation to your employer:
APC application form - lost pension (276KB)
You can pay additional contributions in a one-off lump sum or through regular payments from your wages. The maximum period of absence you can elect to buy back is three years.
If you choose to pay APCs over an extended period of time (more than 12 months), you are required to provide a medical report at your own expense to Staffordshire Pension Fund before your APC contract can start. You should download, print and complete page 1 of the form below and then arrange for your GP to complete page 2.
Medical clearance form (275KB)
Once you have completed the application form and, if required, medical clearance form, you should forward the forms and a copy of your quotation from the APC calculator to your employer. They will check the amounts and then forward the information to Staffordshire Pension Fund once this is done.