Latest news
Would you like a say in the governance of your pension?
Are you interested in helping the scheme run well for its members? Are you:
- a member of the Northamptonshire Pension Fund
- objective
- able to work in a team
- able to analyse information effectively?
If so, why not join us!
The Northamptonshire Pension Fund Board helps West Northamptonshire Council manage the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS).
About the role
You don’t need to be a pensions expert! It’s a voluntary role for four years. You’ll be given full training and all reasonable expenses will be paid for. The Board meets four times a year. All meetings are held in person at:
The Guildhall, St Giles Square, Northampton, NN1 1DE.
The Board reviews:
- decisions of the Pension Fund Committee
- decisions of the Investment Sub-Committee
- draft policies.
You can find more information in our Scheme member representative document.
How to apply
Please email Jeverly.Findlay@westnorthants.gov.uk or Madalina.Bratec@westnorthants.gov.uk for an application form.
Closing date: 27 September 2024
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Changes to our email service
The next time we send you an email you may notice a couple of changes.
Email address
In the 'from' section, next to the Pension Fund name, the email address is currently cambscc@updates.cambridgeshire.gov.uk. This is changing to pensions@updates.westnorthants.gov.uk. Please don’t use either of these email addresses, as they’re not monitored. You can get help and our contact details from our website.
Footer details
Instead of saying the email was sent on behalf of Cambridgeshire County Council, it will change to on behalf of West Northamptonshire Council.
We wanted to make you aware of these changes, so you know the emails are genuine.
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Changes to the LGPS retirement factors
In the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS), you can take your pension at any age between 55 and 75. Although, from 6 April 2028 the Government are planning to increase the minimum pension age from 55 to 57.
Early retirement from 3 July 2023
If you take your pension before your normal pension age (NPA), it will usually be reduced. This is because we’ll be paying your pension over a greater amount of time. The earlier you take your pension, the bigger the reduction. The Government has changed the factors used to work out how much your pension is reduced by. The new factors apply from 3 July 2023 and are lower than the previous ones. This means if you had an early retirement quote before 3 July 2023 for your pension to be paid on or after 3 July 2023, the pension will now be higher.
Late retirement from 1 September 2023
If you take your pension after your normal pension age (NPA), it will usually be increased. This is because we’ll be paying your pension for a shorter period than expected. The Government has changed the factors used to work out how much your pension is increased by. The new factors apply from 1 September 2023 and are lower than the previous ones. This means if you’ve had a late retirement quote for your pension to be paid on or after 1 September 2023, the:
- late retirement increases from 1 September 2023 will have been overstated;
- lump sum payment will be lower than quoted; and
- depending on the dates of your LGPS membership, your annual pension may also be lower.
Getting a quote
You can get an early or late retirement quote on your online pension account. Once you’ve logged in, go to:
- pension benefits; then
- benefit projectors; then
- voluntary retirement.
If you haven’t registered yet, why not do this today? You’ll need your national insurance number handy and to follow the steps in our user guide. If you need help, please email MyPension@westnorthants.gov.uk We’ll need your full name, date of birth, National Insurance Number, and email address.
Or if you’re within 12 months of retiring you can also get a quote by emailing us at pensions@westnorthants.gov.uk
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Reducing the environmental impact of our Funds investments
Both Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire Pension Funds have responsible investment policies to assist with managing carbon and climate risks. To help them to meet their decarbonisation targets, they’ve partnered with Osmosis Investment Management. Osmosis specialise in sustainable investment and will implement two portfolios based on resource efficiency.
Alison Whelan, Chair of Cambridgeshire Pension Committee, said: “As part of our vision to make Cambridgeshire greener, fairer, and more caring, this investment will not only support us in our work to change the Cambridgeshire fund to a lower carbon, sustainable portfolio, which meets our environmental objectives but maintain strong returns for our scheme members.”
Malcolm Longley, Chair of Northamptonshire Pension Committee, said: “This strategy was chosen to deliver reliable returns through investment in a wide range of resource efficient companies, thus enabling us to make significant progress on our decarbonisation journey and ultimately benefiting both scheme members and the environment.”
You can find more information on the Funds investment strategies on the investment pages of our website. For more information on our partnership with Osmosis please read the article on IPE.
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New pension videos
We’ve created a new video series called ‘Your pension journey’. The videos encourage you to think about your pension savings throughout your career, not just when you’re approaching retirement when it may be too late to make changes. They look at things you should think about following events in your life, like moving home, getting married, and changing job and even what you can do if money is feeling a little tight.
Each video is roughly 10 minutes and they encourage you to think about your pension as a savings account, which you check on more regularly. You can watch the videos here. You’ll also find some shorter ‘Pensions made simple’ videos here that explain how your pension works in a non-scary way.
How can I check my pension?
You can check your pension on your online pension account. If you’ve not activated your online pension account yet why not do this today? You’ll need your National Insurance number handy.
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Your Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) pension is secure
You may have seen news stories about the effect that recent events with the UK economy has had on pension funds. We’d like to reassure you that, your LGPS pension isn’t affected by the recent news events. The pension funds affected have mainly been those that invest in liability driven investment (LDI) funds, also known as leveraged gilt funds . We don’t have exposure to LDI funds.
The LGPS is a defined benefit pension scheme which means your pension is based on your salary and how long you pay into the scheme. It isn’t affected by how well investments perform. So whether your pension is already being paid, or whether you’re still paying into your pension, your LGPS pension is secure.
Could pension scams increase?
Yes. Watch out for scams related to the stability of pension funds. You should be particularly wary of people contacting you out of the blue or of adverts offering free pension reviews. You can find out more on how to spot a pension scam on the Money Helper website.
How can I check my pension?
You can check how much pension you have on your online pension account. You can also see how much pension you could get at different retirement dates. If you haven’t registered for your online pension account yet, why not sign up today.
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Getting help with the cost of living
The last couple of years have been difficult, and we’re now seeing rises in the cost of living. If you’re struggling with your money at the moment then you’re not alone. You’re part of the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) and they’ve put together some answers to the following frequently asked questions about the cost of living crisis:
- Where can I find help with rising living costs?
- Can I reduce or stop my pension contributions?
- Could pension scams increase?
- Is there any help for pensioners on lower incomes?
Take a look at the LGPS website to get help on managing your money in these uncertain times.
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Delays to Prudential AVC annual benefit statements for Northamptonshire Pension Fund members
If you have AVCs with Prudential you will receive annual benefit statements from them showing the value of your AVC.
The annual benefit statements for the scheme year ending 31 March 2021 have not yet been sent for Northamptonshire Pension Fund members. Prudential are sorry for the delay and will issue the statements as soon as possible.
If you’re registered for Prudential’s online service you’ll find all the information usually found in your annual benefit statement, and the current value of your AVC, by logging into your Prudential account at login.pru.co.uk
If you haven’t registered it’s quick and easy to sign up to Prudential’s online service by visiting pru.co.uk/registernow. You’ll need your scheme number (L031), the year you joined the scheme and National Insurance number to hand. If you have any problems registering please contact Prudential.
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New LGPS member website
The Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) has updated its website to make it simpler for you to use and easier to understand your pension. Their new website has:
- simple navigation
- easy to use tools and calculators
- useful links, hints and tips
- helpful videos
- new pages and updated content
- faster and more detailed search
It’s also mobile friendly and accessible to everyone.
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Cambridgeshire Pension Fund - investment strategy statement & responsible investment policy
Our Pensions Committee has recently agreed a revised investment strategy statement, which includes an enhanced responsible investment policy.
The revised documents have been agreed following consultation with scheme members and scheme employers earlier in 2021.
We’ve created a new web page which provides more information on these changes and what it may mean for the Cambridgeshire Pension Fund’s investment portfolio. You can also find more information on the responses we had during the consultation period and the updated investment strategy statement on our key documents page.
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Northamptonshire Pension Fund - investment strategy statement & responsible investment policy
Our Pensions Committee has recently agreed a revised investment strategy statement, which includes an enhanced responsible investment policy.
The revised documents have been agreed following consultation with scheme members and scheme employers earlier in 2021.
We’ve created a new web page which provides more information on these changes and what it may mean for the Northamptonshire Pension Fund’s investment portfolio. You can also find more information on the responses we had during the consultation period and the updated investment strategy statement on our key documents page.
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