News

In the final part of our campaign for this year’s Pension Awareness week, we’re reminding you of the ways you can give your pension the attention it deserves. We’re also raising awareness of the importance of keeping your death grant nomination up to date. We’ve got an announcement about a new Shariah compliant AVC option, and a vacancy for you to join our pensions committee if this is a new challenge that you fancy.

EAPF Contributing member webinars 2024

A great way to learn more and help you understand your pension is by joining our EAPF contributing member webinars. We run these each year through October and November and you can now book your place for this year's sessions shown below.

These are tailored specifically to the EAPF and cover various pension topics. Our webinars always receive brilliant feedback, and we use your feedback to ensure we're always improving them.

Find out how to book your ticket online today!

Annual pension statements

You've been able to view your latest annual pension statement via EAPF Online since the end of August. Whether or not you've had the chance to have a look, you might have some questions about your statement.

We've put together a short video which helps you navigate through your pension statement, and there's also a guide to help explain what it all means. What better way to get to know your pension than to start with your statement! If you've not registered to EAPF Online yet, it's really easy. You'll just need your NI number to hand and a valid email account to register with.

Please note: If you’ve joined the Scheme in late March (and didn’t receive your first salary payment until the April), or you joined after March, you won’t get your first annual pension statement until the August of the following year.

Watch our ABS Explained video

Download our Your pension statement explained guide

Login or Register to EAPF Online to view your statement

Pension Awareness national campaigns

In case you missed it, the national Pension Awareness and Pensions Attention campaigns have brought something special this year which is not to be missed. 

Please note that these are the national campaigns, not EAPF campaigns, therefore some of the messages around asking your employer for a ‘Pension Pay boost’ and about 'finding out where your pension is invested to make the most of' are aimed at Defined Contribution schemes which is different to the type of Defined Benefit scheme which the EAPF is. However, there is some useful nuggets of information covered which we hope you’ll enjoy.

You can watch these at pensionattention.co.uk

Pension Awareness campaigners have been doing live shows throughout the week covering all sorts of interesting topics which you can watch any time if you missed them.

You can watch these at https://pensionawarenessday.com/live-shows

Is your nomination for a Death Grant beneficiary up to date?

Your loved ones being covered financially in the event of your death is one of the most important benefits of being a member of the EAPF. You can count on the Scheme to provide valuable protection for your dependants, whether you die before or after you retire.

You can decide who you wish your lump sum death grant (of 3 times your assumed pensionable pay) to be paid to by completing an 'Expression of wish' nomination form. The easiest way to do this is via EAPF Online, your personal pension portal by selecting ‘My Nomination’ once logged in.

It’s really important to regularly check and make sure you have an up-to-date nomination in place. Even if that just means re-confirming the same information we already have, at least we’ll know that your wishes are current. 

Whilst the fund would always take your wishes into account, the form is not legally binding. This means that in the event that your nomination becomes out of date due to a change in your circumstances (for e.g. a divorce or remarriage or having a new partner), officers from the EAPF would need to make a decision about who the payment should go to. And that can be really challenging.  Which is why it’s so important that you regularly check and update your nomination.

You’ll find more details on our Death and Dependants page.

Register or Log in to make your nomination today!

Download a paper form from our Forms page.

New Shariah compliant option in our AVC offering

As a member of the EAPF, you have the option to increase the benefits you’ll receive at retirement by contributing to an Additional Voluntary Contribution (AVC).

We covered AVC’s as part of our first campaign, so you can read more here about what they are and how they compare with the other Additional Pension Contribution (APC) option. See Part 1 of our campaign.

We've reviewed our AVC offering and Prudential, one of our in-house AVC providers now offers a Shariah compliant investment option in its range of Funds for members. We’re also in the process of having a Shariah compliant option with Standard Life too and will add this to our Topping up booklet when it’s available.

For more information on the new fund option please read this guide.

Fancy a new challenge?

We’re looking for a new member representative for our Pensions Committee…Could this be you?

You don’t need any relevant experience, but you do need to have an interest in making sure our pension scheme works well and be able to represent the views of members.

The role is open to anyone of any age who is currently paying into the pension fund every month. It’s an exciting and unique opportunity to learn about pensions, investments and how a pension fund is run.

Read our PC Recruitment leaflet to know more.

We have regular meetings each year and a number of training events to help you develop your knowledge. You’ll need to commit for approximately 10 days a year. This is a voluntary position, and all of your expenses would be met.

So if you’re interested, get in contact with us. Tell us about yourself and why you’d be a good member representative by filling in our application form. Visit our Trustee Appointments page to download an application form.

The closing date for applications is Tuesday 24 September 2024 at 12.00 noon.

Read Part 1 of our Pension Awareness Week campaign

Read Part 2 of our Pension Awareness Week campaign