Private Pension? Not sure what to do...

awowen10

Hello,
Quick back story...
I am a director of a business. I currently pay myself under the NI threshold and the rest through dividends. 
I contribute around 3% of the basic salary into a NEST pension, as I do for my employees. (This works out at a measly £10 pm)
If I had around £200, 250 excess that I wanted to contribute into this or another pension - what would be my best bet?
Up the contribution into this NEST or start a private pension plan?
For the record, a few friends who I spoke to have told me to set up a corporate ISA, get involved in stocks and shares etc - which I plan to do once we have enough money for a mortgage deposit.
So my priority, for now, is a mortgage deposit and to set up a long-term investment plan for my pension.
Thank you,

dunstonh

If I had around £200, 250 excess that I wanted to contribute into this or another pension - what would be my best bet?

Insufficient information to go on.   i.e. virtually every individual pension meets the criteria you have set based on what you have old us.  You haven't told us anything that allows us to filter it.

Up the contribution into this NEST or start a private pension plan?

Nest is basic and simple.  until you get to a decent value, that may well be the best option.

For the record, a few friends who I spoke to have told me to set up a corporate ISA,

There is no such tax wrapper as a corporate ISA.  I suggest you ignore getting advice from friends that make up products/tax wrappers. It indicates they don't have a clue either.  The blind leading the blind comes to mind.

get involved in stocks and shares etc

You can use the pension for that.

Albermarle

The NEST pension is invested in 'stocks and shares' but in the form of funds that hold lots of different shares and bonds at different risk levels . These types of funds are much better for long term investments /pensions than gambling with individual shares.
Just as a secondary point the amounts going into your pension seem rather low . 

awowen10

Sorry. I know my opening post was vague. I'll be honest, talk of pensions is new to me.
I have a 6-month old daughter, which has ignited my desire to want to finally start investing my money better. 
I'll explore the options of contributing more into my NEST for now. Thank you. 

Albermarle

This is a useful govt website 
https://www.pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk/

tacpot12

I would recommend that you start paying over the national insurance threshold, so that build up a decent amount of state pension entitlement. The State Retirement Pension is very good value.
I think NEST is fine for you. It is slightly expensive but it is ready to use so I would throw as much as you can into NEST. Make sure you pick the highest risk fund(s), and have a look at the Sharia fund as well. If I was investing via NEST I would have 25% of my wealth invested in the Sharia fund; I think it is a good fund.

Once you have been invested in NEST for five years and have gotten used to how to monitor your investment there, you will be ready to invest elsewhere. 

awowen10

Albermarle said:

The NEST pension is invested in 'stocks and shares' but in the form of funds that hold lots of different shares and bonds at different risk levels . These types of funds are much better for long term investments /pensions than gambling with individual shares.
Just as a secondary point the amounts going into your pension seem rather low . 

The £14.20 pm is automatically paid through my basic salary. 
The extra contribution would be through what I pay myself in dividends, and that number is around 10% of my total income.
We are a fairly new business, so that extra contribution will increase the more successful the business is.
So yes, low for now - but hopefully not for too long.

princeofpounds

The OP can confirm this, but I suspect that when they say 'under the NI threshold', they are talking about a level of pay where you don't pay any NI, but you do build up NI credits. i.e. Lower Earnings Limit employee. It would be silly not to.

dunstonh

I would recommend that you start paying over the national insurance threshold, so that build up a decent amount of state pension entitlement. The State Retirement Pension is very good value.

The OP is a company director.  He only needs to take an income to the primary threshold which does not require you to pay NI.    If there are sufficient employees, he may need to go do the secondary threshold.

The £14.20 pm is automatically paid through my basic salary. 

A company director should be taking employer contributions only. Not employee.

awowen10

Thanks all. I think I'll seek advice from a local IFA on this. 

Albermarle

awowen10 said:

Thanks all. I think I'll seek advice from a local IFA on this. 

Just be aware that until you have an investment pot of £50K , most IFA's will not be interested.
Maybe you could pay them a one off fee for a consultation/ review but wouldn't be cheap and again might not be much interest .