These proposals include:
- Restoring the target rate for future pensions to two-thirds of the NMS – in technical terms, this means a restored accrual rate of 60ths, being 1/40 of two-thirds of pensionable stipends
- A ‘catch-up’ increase to the National Minimum Stipend (NMS), and basing pensions on the current year’s NMS rather than the previous year, providing a boost to starting pensions
- Uplifting accrued service for all active and deferred members so that service from 2011 is treated at the two-thirds level, rather than a half
- Removing the ‘service cap’ so that every day of service counts towards pension instead of tranches of service reaching limits according to previous maximum service periods.
- For those who are already in receipt of pension and have some post-2011 service, providing a special increase to the pension in payment in respect of higher accrual for post-2011 service – and a commitment to make this new benefit retrospective (with more detail to work through as to how this can be best achieved)
- Mitigating the effect for recent retirees of the NMS having fallen behind inflation in recent years. Pensions in payment over the same period have increased in line with inflation
With Synod having set its policy for pensions improvements, the Pensions Board will lead on the implementation. The first step is to draft new Rules for the scheme to be agreed by Synod at its February Group of sessions. The aim is to start to implement improvements from April 2026, with different changes implemented in stages across the year.
The Pensions Board will continue to keep all members updated on our progress through monthly updates to this webpage. We will keep this page updated with answers to questions as we receive them.
We are not currently able to provide individual calculations showing what the improvements might mean for members. We will write to members as soon as we can, but that may take some time.
Synod also agreed to a further review of the retirement package, with an initial report due in 2026.