Redundancy
If you are over age 55
If you are over 55 and your employer terminates your contract on grounds of redundancy, you are entitled to and must take immediate payment of the benefits relating to that employment.
Your pension benefits will be calculated up to your date of redundancy and released to you without an early retirement percentage reduction being applied.
Please note: the benefits will not automatically be made up to the value at your normal pension age.
If you are under age 55
Your benefits are deferred in the Staffordshire Pension Fund until they can be drawn at your normal pension age, or an election is made to draw them early with possible reductions. The deferred benefit increases with cost of living increases.
Please note: benefits will not be brought into payment at this point.
Less than 2 years membership
If you have less than 2 years membership you will be entitled to a refund of your pension contributions from the Staffordshire Pension Fund.
Please note: we cannot provide you directly with estimates or confirm retirement on grounds of redundancy. All requests must come from your employer.
Frequently asked questions
The following questions and answers are based on a member having at least 2
years membership, which can include previous pension rights transferred
into the fund.
- Answer:
- If you have reached age 55 and you are made redundant, then your retirement benefits will be brought into payment immediately.
- Answer:
Once you have left, your benefits will automatically be preserved and fully inflation-proofed in the LGPS until they come into payment. You can if you wish, choose to transfer the value of them into another pension scheme or arrangement. You can do this at any time before you reach your normal retirement age.
Your preserved benefits will usually come into payment when you reach your normal retirement age. You can, however, choose to take your benefits early from:
- age 55, however benefits paid before normal pension age will be reduced to take into account early payment, (unless you qualify for the protections of the rule of 85)
- any age due to ill-health
- Answer:
If your benefits are being paid immediately, then it depends on what terms you are leaving. No reductions will be applied to your benefits if:
If you retire voluntarily and you commenced in the scheme after 1 October 2006 your benefits will be reduced if paid before normal pension age.
If you retire voluntarily and you have scheme membership before 1 October 2006 a reduction will only apply if you do not qualify for the protections built into the removal of the rule of 85.
- Answer:
If your employer makes you redundant and you have at least two years continuous service, as well as any immediate benefits you are entitled to receive from the LGPS, you will be eligible for a statutory redundancy payment from your employer.
You will need to contact your employer for details of any statutory redundancy payment.
- Answer:
Not necessarily! Your employer can award additional annual pension, to help to compensate for membership that you may lose because you are being retired early, of up to £6,500 (less any amount of additional annual pension your employer has already contributed towards or is contributing towards under a shared cost additional pension contributions contract).
Additional pension is granted at the discretion of your employer therefore no member has an automatic right to be awarded it.
Because your employer will have to meet all the costs of awarding additional pension, they may choose to grant you the maximum or a smaller pension or nothing at all.
- Answer:
Yes, if you retire through forced redundancy or voluntary redundancy then you will automatically be entitled to your pension if you are aged 55 or over and have at least two years membership of the scheme.
- Answer:
If you become re-employed your pension will be unaffected. We will continue to pay your pension in the normal way.
- Answer:
If you have built up membership prior to 1 April 2008 you will be entitled to an automatic tax-free lump sum from the pension fund. If you joined the LGPS after 1 April 2008 you will not be entitled to an automatic lump sum, however, you will have the option of converting some of your annual pension to purchase a lump sum.
Remember: if you are under age 55 the pension lump sum is not automatically payable.
- Answer:
Yes, if you are over age 55 and made redundant you will still be able to convert part of your annual pension into additional tax-free cash. You are allowed to exchange £1 of annual pension for an additional £12 tax-free cash up to a maximum of 25% of the capital value of your total 'pension pot'. You will be provided with details of how this option applies to you before your benefits come into payment, as you will need to decide if you wish to convert any part of your pension into additional tax-free cash before that time.