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Your pension savings

Your pension savings in the Scheme are held and invested in investment funds. The Trustee(s) monitor these funds, but you are responsible for your own selection from the range available.

Each fund is different depending on

What it aims to do:

One fund may concentrate on growing your pension savings, while another fund may concentrate on protecting the value of your pension savings.

What it chooses to invest in:

Some funds might choose to invest in certain types of investments which aim to grow your pension savings over the long term which may mean the value of your pension savings could go up and down over the short term.

Other funds might aim to keep the value of your pension savings stable over the short term rather than concentrating on growing your funds.

What a fund aims to do, and what it invests in, determines how much you are charged as well as how your pension savings are expected to grow.

There are different types of risk when investing in any fund, the main one being that the value of your pension savings can go up as well as down and may not keep up with inflation (the increasing costs of goods and services).

Why am I charged?

You are charged by the manager of each investment fund as part of the work involved in investing and looking after your pension savings.

This work may involve making changes to what the fund invests in because of the aim of the fund or because of a change in the market. You may have also asked to invest in a different fund.

In general you are charged based on a percentage of your total pension savings in that fund.

It’s important that you look at the costs and charges of a fund alongside the value that the fund is trying to give you.

This value can come in many different forms depending on the fund you choose, for example:

growing the value of your pension savings
protecting the value of your pension savings to keep them stable
collecting your payments and keeping them secure

This value can also come from;

all the systems and people’s time needed to look after your policy
the specialist knowledge required to understand the markets and invest your pension savings
any communication, websites and information that help you understand and keep you up to date with your pension savings

Does the scheme provide value for members?

The Trustee(s) who look after the scheme assess the scheme to make sure it delivers value for its members, looking at all the benefits members receive against the costs that they pay.

Members only pay costs in relation to the scheme’s investments.

Barnett Waddingham, the scheme’s independent advisors, carried out the assessment of value and concluded that members have access to a well-governed arrangement at an appropriate and competitive cost and that the scheme provides excellent value to members.

“the scheme provides excellent value to members”

Behind the scenes

To show the impact charges could have on your pension savings over time we have prepared a number of illustrations based on some example scenarios.

The Trustee(s) have produced these illustrations in line with February 2018 guidance from the Department for Work & Pensions to help members understand the costs and charges that apply to their pension savings.

Read on to find out more about what goes into these illustrations, including how we’ve calculated the figures and the assumptions we’ve used.

Funds and example scenarios

Read on to find out more about the funds available and their charges as well as look at the impact the charges may have based on some example scenarios.

Investment performance cannot be guaranteed and fund values can go down as well as up. If you are thinking about changing the fund(s) you are invested in, or would like more guidance around the options available to you, we recommend that you seek advice from an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA).