Those of you with teachers pensions

[40andlovelife]

Do you just have your teachers pension or have you got another private one too? I'm debating what to do.....

I took out a private pension as well.

If you'll have a decent number of years in at 60 or whatever age your TP is payable it should be enough for a reasonable lifestyle. Nothing to stop you putting 'spare' money aside to top it up - you should get tax added back.

Downside is accessibility. Generally speaking it's stuck in the pension until 55 - or later if the rules change. It can probably be shuffled to another provider if the returns are below par but you can't get at it to re-roof the house. OTOH it's also not counted if you fall on hard times and have to claim Universal Credit.

Are there other things you could do with the cash that will give you a decent return without it being locked in so tightly.

This is where investment advice wins; far more so than picking marginal differences in the investment race.

To be honest I think I need to get on the the TPS and ask how the pension actually works! Joined it 16 years ago when I was mid 20's and only just started now to think about what it means for me. Life certainly does fly by. I'm clueless as to how much it will pay out. When I've logged on it tells me my annual pensionable amount which I assume is what I will get annually, if I last until I'm 67 or whatever the age will be then. I know that I pay about £390 per month in to the bloody thing though!

Has anyone logged on the teacher pensions recently?

I've noticed my maternity leaves are completely wrong (wrong years and length!) and the last 5 years don't seem to be recorded correctly as it's doesn't say 'pensionable'. Does anyone know what this means?

Sorry OP. I only found out yesterday a friend has both the TPS and a private pension. It isn't something I considered before.

I have both. We had a visit from a financial advisor when I had just started teaching and I contacted them a few years later. I have been paying into that for more than 20 years now although there was a problem around covid time because it is investment based and there were some concerns about housing prices or something!

I would also recommend going into the teachers pension website. I did recently because I changed schools and it was the easiest way of finding my work history! You also need to name someone for in service death money or it goes to the government and they are not getting any of my hard earned pension money back!

@user1471530109 I've had friends who this has happened to . Just give them a ring and they will sort it.

The TPS website is very useful and should tell you what you could take at retirement based on your employment up until now. You can buy additional pension which is quite attractive as it is index linked but if you have a partner you should be aware that if you die as a pensioner then they would only get half of your pension.

I've had a look at theTPS website just now about this. I really don't understand it though I'm proper thick when it comes to this type of stuff!! Might have to give them a call. I actually don't understand the pensions in general I need it all spelling out to me haha

I had a lady from the Wesleyan come out and talk to me a while ago. She explained it all but I will get her to come out again I think.

This sounds good. Is it a free service?

It is. They were super helpful.

Would definitely recommend talking to Wesleyan. They are very familiar with the TPS.

Thank you. I've just filled in the online form for an appointment. I'm 42 now so starting to panic a little bit about what I should be doing to protect my future. I have no experience with anything like this as my parents didn't have pensions/ wills/ investments or anything of the like

I’ve just tried to book an appointment with them and it wouldn’t let me!

Really? I filled the form in and then received an email saying that they will give me a ring within the next 2 days to book me in with them

I’ve got 27 years of TPS so far - I’m 56 and plan to work for another 10 years. It’s a solid lump sum and pension is pretty good. I don’t have another pension.

It’s one of the few defined benefits pensions left so it’s actually a really good deal. The website is very clear and they’re v helpful on the phone.

Hats off to you planning to work as a Teacher in to your mid 60's! I hope I get that far but don't think I will

Have a look at David Fountain's Teacher Pension videos on YouTube OP. He gives solid advice on lots of different aspects. You can also message him directly and he will respond if you join the Facebook page that he runs. I've added a photo as I don't know how to link!

As an aside...I'm going to be 60 next year and am taking my TP this year at 59. It's a pretty decent amount, and as I have 27 years in the Final Salary scheme (thanks to the McCloud judgement) and only 18 months now in the Career Average scheme, my lump sum has increased significantly too.

I'll be cutting down to 3 days a week once I take my pension, and will be earning more doing this, than when working full time. I'll do this until I teach 67, when my State pension kicks in. At this point (as long as the state pension forecasts remain stable) my TP plus State Pension will be more or less the same as my current full time salary 🤷‍♀️ I haven't quite figured it out accurately as I'm not brilliant with working out tax implications, but on paper, the two amounts are comparable when added together, so even if I get taxed, it won't reduce by horrendous amounts.

Thanks for that info @SpringIntoChaos

im similar to you OP- 15 years in TPS, hoping to learn more about how to increase it. Looked on the site but not sure if Faster Acrual, buying extra or AVCs is the way to go 🤷‍♀️

Thank you @SpringIntoChaos I will definitely look at that. You have it all worked out. Im hoping to get in to a good position for retirement as I waste sooooooo much ££££ so I like you @TheZeppo am looking at increasing my pension. I'm just a little bit annoyed at the moment because I've just learnt that homeowners have to pay for residential care if they need it. I'm hoping that I never need it but I had always banked on leaving my house to my kids

Pensionwise are also good.

https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/pensions-and-retirement/pension-wise