Long, sorry! I am on a break from my usual work, which is as a s/emp contractor due to some caring demands that have happened quite suddenly. I have been offered a few hours at a local school doing something that is related to my usual techie job on a zero hours contract. This is initally going to be a couple of part time days a week but could grow if the project takes off and the caring needs lessen.
They have offered me the option to join their local authority pension scheme. I will probably take it up even though it means I will be paying in a good chunk of my meagre earnings, but this is ok. I also have 2 other pensions, one worth around £25k from years ago when I contracted out of SERPS. This is growing slightly each year and is with Scottish Widows. I also have a workplace pension from years back which is worth a couple of thousand at the most. I am tempted to shift both of these into the local authority scheme as I understand that public sector pensions are quite favourable. I don't know much about pensions and I'm getting on a bit so it's something that I should be addressing. Could someone please explain the pro's and cons of both staying put and combining? If you have read this far then thanks!