News
July 2024
In this section:
LGPS rule change – The McCloud Judgment
Find out the latest information about the about the McCloud Judgement.
What do you need to do?
In order for us to correctly calculate your eligibility, you may need to tell us about any public sector pension scheme membership you have from previous employments before you joined the LGPS. Public sector pension schemes include those for the police, fire brigades, judges, teachers, NHS staff, and the civil service, among others. If you have not already notified us of any previous membership in any public sector scheme, you can do so using the ‘PSPS Membership’ query on your Member Self Service account.
For members currently paying in (Active members)
If you are a protected active member, information about how the underpin might affect your pension has been included in your 2025 annual benefit statement, which is available to view and download from your Member Self Service account.
When you leave the LGPS, we will work out provisional underpin figures for you. We can only work out the final figures and any increase to your pension (a final guarantee amount) when you take your pension.
For members no longer paying in, but not yet taken their pension (Deferred members)
If you are a protected deferred member, information about how the underpin might affect your pension has been included in your 2025 annual benefit statement, which is available to view and download from your Member Self Service account.
We will work out final figures and any increase to your pension (a final guarantee amount) when you take your pension.
For members currently receiving their pension (Pensioner members)
If your LGPS pension in payment will increase because of the McCloud remedy, you should already have received information from us about this. Thank you for your patience as we completed this work.
If you are protected and your LGPS pension has not increased, this is because your career average pension is already more than the pension you would have built up in the final salary scheme.
Background
In 2014, the government introduced reforms to public service pension schemes and most active members were moved into the new career average schemes with later normal retirement ages. The government created some transitional rules for workers within ten years of retirement to protect them from the changes, on the basis that they had less time to plan for their retirement.
These changes were challenged by members of the Judicial (the McCloud case) and Firefighters’ pension schemes on the grounds of age discrimination. In July 2019 the Court of Appeal ruled that younger workers – those more than ten years from retirement – were unfairly discriminated against.
The rules of all public service pension schemes, including the LGPS, changed from 1 October 2023 because of the ruling. The changes are known as the McCloud remedy and they remove the age discrimination found by the McCloud judgment.
From 1 October 2023, all eligible members regardless of age are protected by the underpin. Not all LGPS members are eligible for protection. The underpin will protect the pensions of eligible members that they built up in the remedy period. The remedy period is from 1 April 2014 to 31 March 2022. Underpin protection stopped earlier if you left the LGPS or reached your final salary normal pension age before 31 March 2022.
More information about the McCloud remedy is always available on the LGPS member site.