Pension Reform FAQ

The scheme manager for the CSPS (Alpha) is Cabinet Office, who contract MyCSP to administer the scheme. Administration is anticipated to change to Capita at the end of 2025.

The RCPS is by analogy to the Principal Civil Service Pension scheme (PCSPS) which means that it mirrors the rules of the current PCSPS. Alpha is a completely separate scheme to the PCSPS.

The Alpha Guide on the Civil Service Pension - external link website is a good place to start if you need more detail of how Alpha works alongside the features of the scheme you moved from.

The best of 2 times final pay (less any lump sum paid already), or 5 times pension less any payments made.

If you are in a Final Salary scheme (Classic, Classic Plus or Premium) you will cease to accrue service towards your pension, but your pension will maintain its Final Salary link.

You will also retain the scheme pension age of 60 for your accrued benefits. You will have two parts to your pension when you retire; your RCPS benefits and your Alpha benefits.

No. All active scheme members will be enrolled in the Alpha scheme. You can choose to switch to the Civil Service Partnership Scheme (managed by Legal and General) or opt out.

Yes. Your RCPS benefits will be automatically moved to the CSPS. You will have the option to request a transfer of any other private/occupational pension into Alpha; you cannot do this before you join Alpha.

Yes, everyone will be moved to Alpha regardless of age or proximity to their normal scheme pension age.

The main changes are that the Normal Scheme Pension Age for Alpha aligns to your individual State Pension Age.

The accrual rate for Alpha is 2.32%, whereas Nuvos is 2.30%. Alpha, like Nuvos, is a career average scheme. Alpha is not a Final Salary scheme.

For example, if someone’s pensionable earnings for one scheme year (scheme years run from 1 April to 31 March) were £30K, the pension accrued for that year (not taking into account any inflationary increase) would be £696 per annum £30,000 x 2.32%).

You will be enrolled in Alpha. You will have the option to switch to the CSPS Partnership scheme (which is managed by Legal and General). Your RCPS Partnership pension will cease to receive contributions and you can either leave it with the provider or transfer it to another provider, including transfer to the CSPS Partnership scheme (if you switch to that scheme beforehand).

Yes. Your RCPS pension will maintain a final salary link. For example, if you participate in Alpha until retiring in May 2030 then your RCPS final salary pension will be based on your Final Pensionable Earnings up to May 2030.

When you are moved to Alpha you will stop accruing Nuvos pension. Your Nuvos pension will retain the scheme pension age of 65 and you will continue to have annual inflation linked increases applied. You will start to accrue benefits in Alpha (based on 2.32% of your pensionable earnings) when you are enrolled in Alpha.

Your Classic benefits will retain a normal pension age of 60. In Alpha the normal pension age is aligned with your individual State Pension Age.

No. Your Classic benefits will remain payable from age 60. Your Alpha benefits will be payable from your individual State Pension Age. You could retire at age 60 and draw your Classic benefits and defer taking your Alpha pension to State Pension Age, or take your Alpha benefits early.

If you partially retire before the RCPS move happens your partial retirement pension payments will continue when the scheme moves to the CSPS. You would be enrolled in the Alpha scheme and continue to build Alpha pension until you fully retire or resign. Any RCPS pension you accrued but did not take at partial retirement will be preserved and form part of your CSPS pension benefits.

We cannot give any financial advice. If you aren’t sure what the best option is for you we would suggest you seek some independent financial advice.

The FCA Register - external link lists regulated financial advisers.

The changes are part of the Government's wider changes to public service pensions to ensure that the costs of providing pensions are fairer for the public purse and public service pension schemes are more aligned to the State Pension Age.

These changes stem from Lord Hutton's review of public service pensions in 2011 and the subsequent passing of the Public Service Pension Act 2013. Many public service pension schemes were reformed in 2015 with full reform completed in 2022. The RCPS has had a long standing requirement to implement these reforms.

With regard to switching, if your earlier RCPS benefits were deferred, it is our understanding that if you join the alpha scheme within 5 years (of the switch or opt out date) your former benefits would be automatically aggregated. This means that the final salary link would be re-established.

If you switch or opt back into the alpha scheme after 5 years (of the switch or opt out date) aggregation would not be possible at all. In which case, former final salary benefits would continue to increase in line with the relevant inflationary increase(s).

You cannot opt back into the RCPS after the scheme has closed.

Administration of deferred (also called preserved) pensions and pensions in payment will move from JSS to the Civil Service Pension Scheme administrator.

It is our understanding that whilst you remain in what will become the reformed scheme, any added years contracts already set up, will continue. So if you continued as a contributing member of the reformed scheme until your 60th birthday (assuming no change in hours or on any unpaid leave), your full amount of Classic, Premium or Classic Plus added years would still be purchased by that date.