To have neglected my pension

[Moonsey123]

I moved to the UK 17 years ago and only worked part time for about 14 years due to childcare. I only started making contributions when they became compulsory for small and medium companies, probably about 8 years ago. I only contributed the minimum. I am closer to 50 now and only started worrying about it 2 years ago and started making additional contributions.

I feel there should be more information about it. is this something schools should be teaching our children? or is our duty as parents to inform our children. I come from a working class family so didn't have much information about savings, pensions or investments.

There’s masses of information online and it’s for you to find out what you need to know in order to ensure you will have a pension on retirement.

The fact that you come from a working class family makes absolutely no difference. You’re just as able to get online as anyone else.

I’m from a working class family too and my mother instilled in me early how important it was to pay into a pension - I started at age 18 and haven’t stopped (now mid 40s). Currently pay more in than my mortgage every month and I’m still not sure it’s going to be enough. DH has next to nothing in comparison to mine too.

You need 35 years National Insurance contributions to claim a full state pension in UK. The current state retirement age is 66, but will increase.
You can receive a state pension forecast by looking on www.gov.uk & you can log in & see how many years National Insurance that you have, per year.

Private personal pensions are up to the individual to arrange

I totally agree. I'm in a similar position in that my pension pot is tiny and I'm only now understanding ISA's and stocks and shares and pensions.

Martin Lewis of money saving expert has some great information aimed at teenagers but a good place for anyone to start.

I moved my kids child trust fund to S&S ISA'S about a year ago and give them updates every now and again to show the rise (or fall) and talk to them about compound interest and that these funds are their money but are for the long term. I.will help them both set up a SIPP when they each turn 18 and encourage small but regular savings.

The rules changed a few years ago to make a SIPP easier to open and access at pension age. I talk about money, spending, earning and saving all.the time at home. It's a necessary part of life.

My family is also very working class. No one has / had money. Many of my older family died utterly penniless. That frightens me a lot. The state pension is not to be relied on.

I'm sure you did what you could over the years raising your DC. If you want to start making higher contributions now then do go for it.

I understand completely OP - in my family we were so busy living a hand-to-mouth existence and balancing basic living costs on credit cards, that money as an investment was a topic that just never got discussed. I am in a far better financial situation now because my DH had a very different family outlook, and a lot more help was available when he was younger like student grants, which didn't encourage a debt mindset. It was his uncle that gave us independent advice when we bought a house, for example, as he is a business owner and understood more about savings versus long term loans and mortgages.

I'd start by looking at some government advice sites such as the Money Advice Service. If you can afford it, book an appointment with an Independent Financial Adviser - so much 'advice' on the Internet is designed to sell you something, and you need impartial advice for your own situation.

With utility bill, council tax and general living expenses going up and up the state pension will not cover much.

Pension provision and principles of investment were covered at school for me, but also over the dinner table. Given close to a third of your lifetime may rely on your investment decisions during your working life it seems prudent to discuss it with kids early.

When my 2 DC started work, I sat down with them and went through pensions. They were surprised that the state pension age was so high and likely to go higher. Also surprised that state pension was currently below £10k per annum. They are currently in their works pension currently contributing the minimum but are aware this will need to be increased in time.

I’m from a working class (and very poor) family, I’ve had a pension since the age of 18.

You’re 50ish, so you still have time to prepare for retirement, thats at least 16 years of contributions, so all is not lost.

I think it is pretty condescending to suggest that working class people don’t know about pensions. Not to mention plain wrong, I am from a ex and pretty hard up background myself, it made me more mindful of these things, not less.

I’m from an incredibly hard working immigrant family who arrived in 1959, I was born in the 1960’s so am your contemporary.

Because we were poor when I was a small child it made me want to know how to make money and give any dc I had an easier start in life. My parents taught me about how to be economically efficient and make money stretch and pensions but a very left wing teacher of mine who was a supporter of militant labour who were popular at the time and in charge of Liverpool council described the evils of the stock market. I just thought wow the possibility of free money, he made me an investor as a teenager when I got my first job whilst studying. What’s funny is he espoused hardcore communism something my family despised as they lost everything fleeing from China in the 1930’s to Hong Kong.

I come from a working class family so didn't have much information about savings, pensions or investments

This isn't because you're working class - it's because (for whatever reason) your parents chose not to educate you about those things.

I was raised middle class but DH is very much from a working-class family and he's paid into a pension since he started work at 16. At first it was through his employer, but now he's self-employed and has a private pension.

With access to the internet I really don't think there's an excuse not to educate yourself about these things - you can't blame your parents forever when you have all the knowledge in the world at your fingertips.

www.gov.uk/personal-pensiins-your-rights

www.gov.uk/check-state-pension

www.gov.uk/check-national-insuranxe-record

www.gov.uk/personal-pension-your-rights

I also don't think it's a class thing, but whether or not your parents were money-savvy.

I have been able to pay into a pension since I started work, but because of my parents I've always paid in a bit more (I think I was told that you should pay in half the age you were when you started your pension, so if you started paying in at 30, you should pay in 15% of your salary). But I know it's not as straightforward as this for everyone.

Op - try not to worry, get a statement of state pension to see how many years you've paid in, then look to find the best place for your money going forward.

I no what you mean op. My family never spoke about pension savings and I never learned a thing at school. During my 20's I didnt have much spare income so barely contributed anything. Iv made big efforts to change that now as I'm more able to

I started paying into a private pension in my mid 20s, when I changed employment
I worked for a big company, a pension advisor visited the work place & I signed up. This was before the days of the Internet. I am so glad that I have paid in due to free money from the tax man & free contributions from my employer, compound interest & free death in service. Win, win, win
Yes compound interest was taught when I was at school.

Times have changed now
I believe that all large, medium & small companies have to offer their employees a private pension, but you can opt out if you wish

Similarly, the Government introduced child trust funds to encourage people to save

I'm going to add that I thought that pensions were incredibly boring when I was in my 20s. However, I also understood that they were important & beneficial due to long term financial planning.

Schools can’t do it all - people need to take responsibility and look on Govt websites etc.

Schools touch on this a bit as part of financial education in the curriculum, but they can’t fit it all in.

You should check the gov.uk website to see what, if any, state pension entitlement you have. Then check your workplace ones - are they pots from money purchase (defined contribution) schemes, or defined benefit pensions (eg final salary or career average, based on length of service at a firm). Your work HR should be able to tell you.

Ensure all your pension providers have your current address, and make sure from now until you retire you put in as much as you can. 20% is recommended, which should include your contribution, plus employers contribution, plus tax relief.

Call the Money and Pensions Advisory Service for more help.

I’ve taught pensions as part of a PSHE lesson.

Sadly 15 year olds aren’t particularly interested in financial planning for their 70s. It’s hard enough to get them to plan for independent living at the age of 18 or 21. Let alone get them to take on planning for their retirement.

I think there needs to be more education out there for mothers so they understand the true cost of reducing hours and staying home etc, or if they're 'D'H is no longer D. Ive always paid into a pension, I'm not sure where I was taught that or if I've just had the foresight, but I was acutely aware when having kids the impact maternity leave would have and have always treated pension contributions as compulsory as tax is, it's never occurred to me to not contribute.

Thank you. I have started saving more now but with young children we were always busy and I worked part time for a long time; so thinking of retirement only hit me last year.

We talk about money to the children so they are money conscious. We don't want to make them money obsessed so don't want to overdo it, we want them to enjoy being children too. Just want them to learn the value of saving and living beyond your means but also enjoying life and living in the present. Trying to get the balance right.

Growing up we lived hand to mouth so never talked about savings or retirement.

I will show the websites to my oldest one who is 14, youngest one is only 11 so I think still a bit young to understand.

I've been paying small amounts into personal pensions since my 20's. My parents used to have an insurance man collect premiums and he sorted them. I also have a work pension but only for the last 9 years.
50 isn't too late to pay into your pension just as 20 is not too early.
My parents retired early on good working class pensions. Now people need extra money because lifestyle's have changed and people expect more disposable income. We like expensive holidays. We could retire on our pensions when we reach 55 but only because we have two rentals and other savings.

Saying you were working class is just an excuse to pass the responsibilty on to someone else. Schools can't do everything. People need to stop expecting to be spoon fed every aspect of life and take some personal responsibility for themselves and their families.
We all have access to the internet, we have so much more information available to us then previous generations so why are you still trying to blame schools.