Teachers' pension

Chaddee

I'm sure these are very stupid questions but I just don't understand all this stuff no matter how much I read the website bumpf!

Through my school I put about £150 per month into my pension. I assume the school also put in something but I don't know how much - how do I find out without having to go crawling to the secretary with another stupid question?!

I have been on the website but can't make head nor tail of it. When I retire (I'm only 24 now!) if I work for 40 years how much could I expect to get? I don't understand this business of lump sums etc.

And if I have a career break to have my children should I continue to put money into the pension at that time? Or into other savings?

I must have been given paperwork at some point, mustn't I? I file everything manically and I can't find anything. I was sent a letter last year saying that I hadn't been working long enough to tell me how much it was worth. Useful! That's the only correspondance I've had.

Thank God I don't teach Maths!

Thanks for any help in advance.

Chaddee

Sorry - and if I don't want to be horrendously poor when I retire should I also invest in a private pension or is this plus the state one likely to be enough? I had no choice about opening this one - it was all done for me, and the idea of opening another scares me somewhat!

Andy_L

If you work for 40 years you will receive a pension of either

(40(years worked) x average salary)/60 if you joined after jan 07

otherwise
(40 x average salary) /80 plus a lump sum of 3 years pension.

The average salary is a bit of a faff but will generallly be the last 12 months of salary unless you take a paycut or a drastic pay rise in the last few years of service.

sparklymessygirl

Chaddee,

I have had to phone the TPA a few times in the past with stupid questions and they have always been very patient - why don't you compile a list of questions and give them a ring?

Your union office might also have someone who can explain it all to you really simply

Sparkly

Newly_retired

It's hard at your age to guess what your future earnings might be worth when you come to retire, but the teachers' pension is a good one, a final salary scheme, which is rare these days, so it is well worth it. I don't think you can continue to pay in whilst you are taking a career break, but you can buy additional pension within the scheme, thogh this is not cheap. If you can afford to put money aside whilst you are at home, maybe using your ISA allowance, if you are not already doing so, would give you additional cash savings which you can access whenever you want, whereas teachers' pensions can't be till retirement.
I found my union very helpful, also the teachers pension website. Persevere- it is worth it!

Chaddee

Thanks for all the replies - it just seems so hard to think about when I'm not earning very much - how on earth do I know what I'll be earning in 40 odd years?! I will give the TPA a ring and ask them to send me some info. Thank you all!

Sobraon

Chaddee you contribute 6.4% of salary, nominally the employer contributes about 14.5% (ish). However an IEA (http://www.iea.org.uk/) report estimated the 'true' cost to the government at about 32% of pay for females and about 29% for males. This is a lot of 'income' to give up (although it goes into the pension scheme of course). I dare not tell you what the 'true' cost of the police and armed forces pensions is!

Novision

Chadee - the Teachers Pension scheme is fantastic - stay in it. It costs you 6.4% of salary but the school puts in 14% and you get a proper final salary government backed guaranteed pension. It also has lots of other add on benefits. If you can't be bothered reading up that's fine - just stay in the scheme.

seven-day-weekend

Novision wrote: »

Chadee - the Teachers Pension scheme is fantastic - stay in it. It costs you 6.4% of salary but the school puts in 14% and you get a proper final salary government backed guaranteed pension. It also has lots of other add on benefits. If you can't be bothered reading up that's fine - just stay in the scheme.

Agree absolutely.

littleowl

Novision wrote: »

Chadee - the Teachers Pension scheme is fantastic - stay in it. It costs you 6.4% of salary but the school puts in 14% and you get a proper final salary government backed guaranteed pension. It also has lots of other add on benefits. If you can't be bothered reading up that's fine - just stay in the scheme.

I am receiving a Teachers' pension and am curious about what 'other benefits' it might have, I have yet to discover any?

seven-day-weekend

Well for a start it has a spouse's pension if you die.