Accrual Rate – The rate you built up your benefits each year you were a contributing member. For example, in the 2017 and Basic Benefits Scales, you built up 1/80th of your Earnings as pension credit each year.
Active Member – A member paying contributions into the Scheme and building up benefits. The Scheme no longer has any active members.
Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs) – You may wish to pay AVCs to supplement your retirement savings. Further information can be found here.
Annual Allowance – Additional contributions you may have paid while you were an active member to supplement your retirement savings. You can carry forward unused Annual Allowance from the previous three tax years. Further information can be found here.
Benefit Scale – The basis on which you accrued benefits under the Scheme.
CARE – Stands for Career Average Revalued Earnings and is a type of defined benefit pension scheme. Your pension in the Scheme is based on the average of your earnings during the time you contributed to the Scheme.
Closure Date – The Scheme closed from 30 June 2019. Members will no longer pay contributions or accrue benefits after this date.
Commutation – When you retire, you may choose to commute (exchange) some of your pension for a cash lump sum.
Consumer Price Inflation (CPI) – a measurement of inflation.
Contracting-Out – The Scheme was contracted-out of the Second State Pension until 6th April 2016. If you were a contributing member before 6th April 2016 you will have paid lower National Insurance Contributions and you would not have built up any entitlement to the Second State Pension. Contracting-Out ended in April 2016 when the State Pension Scheme changed.
Contributions – From the Closure Date, no further member contributions (voluntary or otherwise) are payable towards the Scheme.