Avon Pension Fund
Administered by Bath and North East Somerset Council
Administered by Bath and North East Somerset Council
Pensioners
News & Guides
Avon Pension Fund's Pensioners' Newsletter - Keeping people in touch
atease - Autumn 2008
(pdf 435kb)atease - Spring 2008
(pdf 768kb)atease - Autumn 2007
(pdf 451kb)atease - Autumn 2006
(pdf 311kb)atease - Spring 2006
(pdf 500kb)atease - Autumn 2005
(pdf 378kb)atease - Spring 2005
(pdf 216kb)atease - Spring 2004
(pdf 198kb)atease - Spring 2003
(pdf 250kb)
Notes for New Pensioners - Active Members before 1 April 2008.pdf
(29kb)
Notes for New Pensioners - Active Members after 1 April 2008.pdf
(35kb)
(29kb)Notes for New Pensioners - Active Members after 1 April 2008.pdf
(35kb)Is my Local Government Pension Safe?
I've read in the papers that Britain may be slipping into an 'economic depression', is my local government pension safe?
Yes, your local government pension is indeed safe - read on if you want to know more...
You may have heard stories in the media recently about the 'credit crunch', and the difficulties some financial institutions are in and wondered just how secure your pension from Avon Pension Fund is.
The Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) is a statutory pension scheme, which means that the amount of benefits you are entitled to are laid out in law and cannot be reduced. The increases you get on your pension are also laid down by law, which says that Avon Pension Fund must increase your pension each year in line with the government's 'Retail Prices Index', so that it continues to keep pace with the cost of living.
The LGPS Regulations require Avon Pension Fund to invest the contributions it receives from employees and employers, and from this we pay the pensions as they fall due. Pension Fund does not have 'all it's eggs in one basket' and the Fund reduces its risk by investing in different types of investments all over the world, including shares, property, government bonds and company bonds. This means that if one type of asset falls in value, such as shares in the current market, then hopefully the other investments will protect the Fund.
When you were working and paying LGPS contributions you may have been aware that your employer was also paying a contribution in addition to your own. Scheme Employers have to pay into the Fund by law. The Scheme Actuary assesses the Fund every three years and sets the amount employers have to pay, depending on the investment performance of the Fund and any changes in the level of our liabilities. The aim is to ensure that the Fund's assets will be sufficient to meet future pension liabilities, as calculated by the Actuary.
Because the level of your pension is set by law, and the Scheme Employers have to pay to maintain the level of the Fund by law, the LGPS gives you what is sometimes called a 'pension guarantee'. In the event that the assets of the Fund are not sufficient to meet the cost of providing future pensions, the Scheme Employer contribution rate is increased to a level that will eliminate the shortfall.
Although there are 80 employing organisations participating in Avon Pension Fund many of these are small employers with few members. The vast majority of active contributing members work for the four large Unitary Authorities (i.e. Bath & North East Somerset, Bristol City, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire Councils) and also other Scheme Employers such as the further and higher education bodies in the Avon region. Ultimate responsibility to maintain the level of the Fund lies with Bath & North East Somerset Council, which is the Administering Authority for Avon Pension Fund under the LGPS Regulations. The Government Department responsible for the LGPS is the Department for Communities and Local Government.
In summary, despite what you might hear in the media about the state of the economy, you should not worry unduly about your local government pension from Avon Pension Fund. It is as secure a pension as it's possible to have.
If you would like further information about how the Fund is managed, you can download Avon Pension Fund's 'Statement of Investment Principles', 'Funding Strategy Statement' and the latest 'Actuarial Valuation Report' (as at 31 March 2007) from the 'Finance & Investments' section of our website at www.avonpensionfund.org.uk You can also request printed copies of these publications by contacting Avon Pension Fund.