Fire Pension Scheme

Key features of the FPS 2015:

• A Career Average Revalued Earnings (CARE) pension scheme. For each Scheme Year (1 April to 31 March) as an active member, you will build a pension equal to 1/61.4 of your Pensionable Earnings for that year, which is then added to your pension account and subsequently revalued each year until you retire.
• You will be able to commute part (up to 25%) of your pension at a rate of 1:12; therefore for every £1 of pension given up you receive a lump sum of £12.
• The rate of revaluation applied to your pension account at the end of each Scheme Year will be the movement in the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
• Your Normal Pension Age (NPA) is 60, but with the option retire voluntarily from age 55 with actuarial reduction to reflect early payment.
• There is NO maximum period of service. If you decide to continue in service beyond your NPA, there will be an actuarial increase applied to your pension to account to take account of late payment.
• If you should die whilst serving as an active member, a lump sum death grant of 3 times your final pay at the date of death is payable.
• A survivor's pension will be automatically paid to your spouse or civil partner for their lifetime, although a declaration will need to be completed for such a pension to be paid to a partner who is neither a spouse nor a civil partner.
• Eligible children under the age of 23 may also qualify for a pension.
• If you leave or opt out of the Scheme, without taking a pension or a refund of contributions, your benefits will be deferred and will become payable from your State Pension Age (SPA), which may change in the future. If paid early on request, an actuarial reduction will be applied, unless you are deemed to be permanently medically unfit for regular employment, in which case there will be no actuarial reduction applied.
• Purchasing 'added pension' is currently limited to £6,500 per year. The limit may be altered by HM Treasury.