The Pensions Trust's CARE Scheme
The Pension Trust’s CARE Scheme is a centralised Scheme with a single investment fund. It offers two benefit structures: 1/80th and 1/100th. Please contact The Pensions Trust for details of the 'CARE 100ths' section. The information below relates to the 1/80th section of the scheme.
CARE provides members with a core salary-related benefit of 1/80th of total earnings each year. This benefit is increased annually to allow for price inflation(RPI). The Scheme also provides valuable death benefits.
Employers currently contribute at the rate of 10%. A prudent funding basis is designed to minimise the risk of this contribution increasing.
Prudent funding aims to generate a surplus, although this cannot be guaranteed. Any surplus will belong to the members and will be distributed to the Flexible Retirement Plan for the individuals concerned. At retirement, members will receive a combined benefit of the core defined benefit from CARE plus the profit share held in the Flexible Retirement Plan.
The design of our CARE Scheme recognises that the cost of pension provision increases with age. Employee contributions are age related and change each April. The formula for calculating employee contributions is member’s age divided by 10.
This section of the CARE Scheme is contracted-out of the additional State Pension (the State Second Pension), which means that both employers and members pay lower National Insurance Contributions.
The Scheme provides a wide range of benefits for members including:
- Retirement Pension with option of lump sum
- Ill-health early retirement
- Death Benefit lump sum
- Survivor’s or partner’s Pension on death
- Full cost of living (RPI) increases to each year's pension earned, prior to retirement
- Increases to Pensions in retirement