Retirement Options FAQs
- Can I still work the same hours and access my pension flexibly?
- Do I need to get my department to agree to my request for flexible or partial retirement?
- If I flexibly/partially retire can my contract be extended after the three-year period?
- Can I flexibly retire and then do partial retirement and return to work?
- Can I do partial retirement and then flexibly access pension when I return to work?
- Can I flexibly access pension if I’ve opted-out of the pension scheme?
- When should I complete my partial/flexible retirement form?
- If I reduce my working hours to access pension, can I then increase them afterwards?
- I have a National Clinical Impact Award (NCIA) (previously known as Clinical Excellence Awards). Will this be affected if I partially/flexibly retire?
- I'm in the NHS pension scheme, can I choose which part of my pension I wish to access e.g. 1995/2008/2015?
- If I partially retire and return on a new contract of employment, will I join the pension scheme again?
No. You will be expected to reduce your working hours in order to access some, or all of your pension. For USS members you will need to reduce by at least 0.2 FTE and 0.1 FTE for NHS members.
Yes. You will need the approval of your department as your terms and conditions of employment will change.
No. Your contract will not be automatically renewed after the three year period.
No. You will not normally be re-employed at the end of your contract into the same role. However, if there are vacancies at the College you wish to apply for you can.
Yes, you can do this but must still fully retire within the three year period.
For NHS pension scheme members you must be an active member of the scheme. For USS members you can still flexibly access pension if you have opted-out.
Your completed form must be sent to the HR Staff Hub for processing at least three months before you plan to access pension. The sooner you start to talk about your plans with your Line Manager the better.
Flexibly accessing your pension is the start of the journey into retirement. Therefore, we would not normally agree to you increasing your working hours again. However, we recognise that this might suit both you and the College in some circumstances but, pension scheme rules would not permit this until a year has passed after drawing pension.
They shouldn’t be affected, however, the ACCIA must be notified before claiming your pension. They will confirm whether the award will be retained, and at what level.
Yes. You can chose to draw some or all of either your 1995/2008/2015 pension and have flexibility to pick and chose.
Yes, the College will auto enrol you again into a pension scheme as long as you are under your state pension age and earn more than £833 per month. If you don’t meet the automatic eligibility criteria you can still ask to join a pension scheme if you wish.