Update on McCloud Judgement

When the Government reformed public service pension schemes in 2014 and 2015 they introduced protections for older scheme members. The Court of Appeal ruled that younger members of the Judges and Firefighters Pension schemes were discriminated against because the protections did not apply to them. The Government has confirmed that there will be changes to all public sector schemes to remove this age discrimination.

The impact on the LGPS is not yet know but the Scheme Advisory Board (SAB) has confirmed that protections will automatically apply so please make sure your members are aware of this and that they do not need to make an employment tribunal claim.

The SAB is currently working on a communication for members which we will share with you in due course.

For more information on this, please visit the McCloud Page of the SAB website.

Pensions Increase for 2020 Confirmed

On 25 February 2020, the Government made a written statement on indexation and revaluation. and confirmed the Pensions Increase rate for 2020 will be 1.7% applied from 6th April 2020. 

The 2020/21 employee contribution bandings have been updated and are available on our website. 

Automatic Enrolment (AE) earnings trigger 2020/2021

The AE earnings trigger for 2020/21 will be £10,000. This is the same as 2019/20. The Government confirmed this in a written statement on automatic enrolment to Parliament on 13 February 2020. It will lay legislation following the February recess to that effect.

Employer Workshops

For those of you who attended the recent Employer PLOG's, you will remember that we planned to run some Employer Self Service (ESS) training workshops in March. However, due to the rapidly changing picture of coronavirus in the UK including confirmed cases in Devon, we have decided to delay the workshops until late April/early May and we will share the dates and venues in April's edition. In the meantime, please see our website for guidance on ESS and the processes you need to follow.

TUPE’s & New Academies

If you are outsourcing services and have a number of staff who will be subject to TUPE and moving to a new employer or your school is converting to an Academy or moving MAT, please do not submit any leaver forms as this will complicate the process – instead there is a staff data capture spreadsheet you can complete on our website.

Keep us updated

Please remember to keep us updated with any changes in staff responsible for completing our forms (authorised signatories). This can be done by completing our via our online form.

You can also use this form to notify us of your IDRP Stage 1 Appeals Officer and any delegated authorised contacts.

Payment of Pension Fund Contributions

Please remember to inform us and the relevant Finance team each time you have paid your pension scheme contributions, by filling in the Monthly Contributions Form. If we receive the returns right away with the payments and they are correct - it makes the process so much easier, so please ensure that you build this form into your procedures.

If you are a Somerset Pension Fund employer, please contact the Corporate Finance Team for a copy of the Monthly Contribution Return: Corporatefinancepens@somerset.gov.uk

If you are a Devon Pension Fund Employer, you will need to use the online EAS5 form. If you have not already registered, a login can be obtained from the Employer and Communications Team.

Contacts

Employer & Communications  Team

Quick links

Employer Services (ESS) Guide

Peninsula Pensions Employers' Pages

Peninsula Pensions  Employers' Guide

LGPS regulations and guidance

Fund Investments

LGPS National Website

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