What is a public sector pension?

What are public sector pensions?

Public sector pensions are workplace pension schemes for government employees.

The largest public sector pension schemes in the UK are those for the armed forces, the Civil Service, NHS workers, teachers, police and firefighters, and employees working in local government.

These schemes are statutory defined benefit pensions, which provide an income in retirement based on how much you earned when you were working.

Most major public sector schemes are ‘unfunded’. This means that they're paid from current tax revenue, rather than from dedicated investment funds. 

NHS Pension Scheme

There are three different 'sections' of NHS Pension Scheme - the 1995 Section, the 2008 Section and the 2015 Section.

The 1995 and 2008 Sections of the NHS Pension Scheme pay a final salary pension. The 2015 Section pays an income based on your career average earnings, which is less generous than the final salary scheme.

Some people who were members of the original 1995 or 2008 sections of the NHS pension scheme were moved into the 2015 Section on 1 April 2015.

But others qualify for 'protection' because they were close to retirement age when the changes were introduced.

How much do you contribute to your NHS pension?

Both full-time and part-time workers pay a percentage of their pensionable pay into their pension each month. This is topped up by employer contributions as well as pension tax relief.

As of April 2019, the employer contribution rate is 20.68%, which includes a scheme administration charge of 0.08%.

The amount you contribute as an employer depends on how much your earn. Here are contribution rates for 2025-26, shown as a percentage of gross salary (before tax relief). 

When can you take your NHS pension?

You get your pension at what is called the 'normal pension age'. This is the age that you retire from working for the NHS and have your pension paid without facing a reduction for early payment.

You can retire early and claim your pension once you reach the minimum pension age (55). However, your pension benefits will be reduced, to reflect the fact that your pension will pay out for longer.

Your normal retirement age varies depending on what section of the scheme you're in.

• 1995 Section - normal retirement age is 60
• 2008 Section - normal retirement age is 65
• 2015 Section - normal retirement age is your state pension age

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Teachers' Pension Scheme

Until 2015, the Teachers' Pension Scheme was a final salary scheme. This meant that it was based on a teacher's salary when they left teaching. 

In April 2015, the scheme changed to a career average system, where your pension is based on your average earnings throughout your career.

Most teachers were transferred over to the career average scheme at this point, though some older members were able to remain in their final salary scheme for a further seven years. 

As of April 2022, all active members of the pension scheme are contributing to the career average scheme, but if you have built up any benefits under the old final salary scheme, these will be protected. 

How much do you contribute to the Teachers' Pension Scheme?

Both full-time and part-time workers pay a percentage of their gross salary into their pension each month. This is topped up by employer contributions.

The amount you contribute varies depending on how much you earn. Here are the contribution rates for 2025-26:

When can you take your Teachers' pension?

The age at which you get to access your pension, called your 'normal pension age', depends on when you joined the scheme.

For teachers who joined before 1 January 2007, the normal pension age is 60. If you joined after this date, the normal pension age is 65.

Civil Service Pension Scheme

The Civil Service Pension Scheme has five final salary sections: Classic, Classic Plus, Premium, Nuvos and Alpha.

Up to 30 September 2002, the only pension offered was the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme. On 1 October 2002, a new scheme, called 'Premium', was introduced and the old scheme was renamed 'Classic'.

Members could either stay in the old scheme or join the new one. There was also a third option, Classic Plus, which is a hybrid of Classic and Premium.

Nuvos was the scheme offered to new joiners from 30 July 2007 until the latest version, Alpha, was introduced from April 2015.

Since 2002, new entrants have also had the option of joining Partnership, which is a defined contribution pension scheme.

This means that the Partnership scheme doesn't pay you an income based on your salary while you were working as a civil servant. Instead, the value of your pension when you retire depends on how much you (and your employer) have paid in, as well as how the underlying investments have performed.

How much do you contribute to the Civil Service Pension Scheme?

No matter what part of the Civil Service Pension Scheme you're in, you make the same contributions. The amount you contribute varies depending on how much you earn.

Here are the contribution rates for 2025-26:

When can you take your Civil Service pension?

It depends on the scheme you're in. The normal pension age (NPA) for the Alpha scheme is the later of 65 or your state pension age  Nuvos has a NPA of 65. The Classic, Classic Plus and Premium schemes usually have a pension age of 60.

You can take your pensions before your NPA, with a minimum age of 55 or 50 for some older schemes, although your benefits will be reduced to take account of early payment. 

The Partnership pension is a defined contribution scheme, which means you can take your pension from age 55.