Pension Reform

This page aims to give you information regarding the planned reform of the RCPS and associated scheme administration changes.

RCPS Pension Reform Update November 2025

We can now confirm that the RCPS will close and transfer to the Civil Service Pension Scheme, this is planned to happen in October 2026.

We have published a news item announcing the changes in more detail. Pension Reform Update.

We will provide more information by the end of 2025 including details of information sessions you can attend in February 2026 and further details relating to the transfer.

Background to RCPS Reform

The RCPS has long operated by-analogy to the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme (PCSPS), meaning it mirrored the rules and structure of the PCSPS without being formally integrated. Both schemes are unfunded defined benefit arrangements, relying on employer and employee contributions to fund current pensions rather than investment returns.

Reform of the PCSPS started in 2015 and was fully completed in 2022 with all active scheme members being moved to the new section of the scheme, called Alpha. This change was part of wider reforms to the main public service pension schemes.

HM Treasury Ministers recently confirmed that reform should be achieved by closing the RCPS and transferring it into the Civil Service Pension Scheme (CSPS) arrangements, with active members enrolled in the Alpha pension scheme.

What does this change mean for you?

Scheme administration will move to the CSPS.

Active members in the scheme at the transfer date will have their existing RCPS pension rights preserved, and pension benefits accrued up until 30 September 2026 will be protected.

The transition will not affect your pension entitlements to date, including any transfers in, any Added Pension or Added Years you have purchased. Active RCPS members will be enrolled in the CSPS (Alpha scheme). Employers will also communicate directly with their employees about these changes.

Pensions in payment will also be moved to the CSPS, as will management of preserved pensions (people that have left an RCPS employer but not yet reached pension age). We will write to these members separately to tell them about the changes.

Civil Service Pension Scheme and Alpha 2015 Remedy

You may have read or heard about the McCloud judgement and Remedy. That judgment relates to changes originally made to the PCSPS and other public service pension schemes in 2015 which were partly remedied in 2022 following a case taken through the Courts. This case and outcomes are commonly known as the McCloud case. The case does not affect any RCPS members because the RCPS did not introduce any reforms in 2015 or make any subsequent changes with any link whatsoever to the McCloud case or Remedy activities

The CSPS have published information about the McCloud ruling and their 2015 Remedy 2015 Remedy. This can be found on their 2015 Remedy Page - external link.

The House of Commons Library have also published a briefing about Public service pension reforms and impact. - external link

We have added some Fequently Asked Questions and Answers to our Pension Reform FAQ page.

Previous news items can be found in the Reform News Archive (PDF, 305KB) - opens in new window document.

If you have any questions regarding pension reform, please email them to: reform@jss.ukri.org.