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<p><span style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; white-space: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto">&nbsp;</span></p><p><span style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; white-space: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto">Nobody likes to imagine getting older, so many of us choose to ignore our pensions.&nbsp; It’s nothing new, but it’s unwise. A recent study* has found two-thirds of adults retiring in 2021 in the UK won’t have enough in their pension to fund their post-work life. Many people are now facing a difficult retirement.</span> <span style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; white-space: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto"></span><br></p><h2>Women especially should consider their position<br></h2><p>Society and family structures have changed hugely since the UK pension system was first created in the early 1900s. The traditional nuclear family was the norm, with men typically earning the money and women raising the children at home. But now, this family model has changed. There are more women than ever in the workplace, there are many single-parent families and different family structures.</p><p>According to a report published by Barnett Waddingham in March 2021**, women who take time off work have fewer pension savings than women who don’t.</p><p>For a woman taking two 12 month career breaks in her early 30s, with no pension savings or salary increase during this time, it can lead to a level of pension savings at retirement of around 10% lower compared to a woman with no career breaks.</p><h2>Lack of pension parity for women<br></h2><p>It’s not just career breaks that impact women’s pension savings. The report found that the pension gap between men and women is most stark in the high affluence group – typically because men’s pay in this group is significantly higher than women’s.</p><p>There are many more contributing factors, including:</p><ul><li>Taking on caring responsibilities for children, ageing parents or other family members typically gives less flexibility for many women to progress in their careers, earn more and contribute more to workplace pensions;</li><li>The imbalance of women working in lower paid or lower skilled occupations;</li><li>Women are more likely to be on zero-hour contracts or working multiple part-time roles so do not reach workplace pension auto-enrolment thresholds;</li><li>The increasing rates of divorce, particularly in later life;</li><li>The low level of default contribution rates in general.</li></ul><h2>Will you have enough for the retirement you want?<br></h2><p>Women in particular should carefully consider their options well before retirement, and whether they have enough saved to maintain their current lifestyle. </p><p>Our planning tools can help. &nbsp;</p><p>When you log in, or register for an account, you will see two modellers in the ‘Planning for the future’ section of your ‘myRPS account’.</p><ul><li>Defined benefit members can use the <strong>pension planner</strong></li><li>IWDC members can use the <strong>retirement modeller</strong>.</li></ul><p>All members can then use the <strong>retirement budgeting calculator</strong> to find out if your current level of pension benefits and/or savings will be enough, or whether you might want to make adjustments.</p><p>You can use the calculator together with your latest benefit statement, or <strong>request an estimate. </strong>It’s free to do, you can request as many as you like, and the estimate is usually ready within an hour. </p><p>These planners will show you what your annual income is likely to be when you retire. As a rough guideline, current research shows you will need between £10,200 (basic) to £33,000 (comfortable) per year when you finish work.</p><p>The Retirement Living Standards are benchmarks for the income you might need in order to afford different lifestyles - minimum, moderate and comfortable. Full details can be found at <a href="http://www.retirementlivingstandards.org.uk/" data-sf-ec-immutable="">retirementlivingstandards.org.uk</a>. But as a general rule, they suggest the following:</p><img src="00ddcd22-bb33-4a45-9ba4-28b0d6aff300" style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; white-space: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto" alt="retirement Living Standards are benchmarks for how much you might need in retirement based on a minimum, moderate or comfortable lifestyle"><p><br>It’s never too early – or too late- to start making extra contributions to your pension savings.</p><h2>How to save more with Additional Voluntary Contributions</h2><p>Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs) are flexible extra pension savings you can make from your pay (before tax is taken) on top of the normal contributions you make to your pension.</p><ul type="disc"><li>One of the perks of AVCs is that you don’t need to save a set amount every month. If you’ve got an expensive time coming up, you can reduce your contributions, or equally you can add more in if you have some to spare.&nbsp;</li><li>AVCs are a great way to save extra money for retirement if you get large payments that don’t qualify for your pension, such as overtime and bonus payments.</li><li>You’ll also get government tax relief on anything you put in up to your annual allowance - currently £40,000 for most people. &nbsp;If you’re a high earner with an income of more than £200,000 a year, your annual allowance might gradually reduce to as low as £4,000 in the current tax year.</li></ul><h2>AVCs for defined benefit members</h2><p>The main AVC arrangement open to defined benefit (DB) members is called BRASS. When you join the Scheme, you’ll get a separate BRASS account, and your AVC contributions are then invested in a range of funds with the aim of building up extra pension savings over time.</p><p>&nbsp;You’ll be able to&nbsp;<a href="https://member.railwayspensions.co.uk/my-rps" data-sf-ec-immutable="">log in to your account</a>&nbsp;(or&nbsp;<a href="https://member.railwayspensions.co.uk/register" data-sf-ec-immutable="">register</a>) any time to:</p><ul><li>make changes to the BRASS amount you contribute</li><li>view your investment fund holdings</li><li>see how the funds are performing​</li><li>change the funds you invest in.</li></ul><h2>How much more should I save?</h2><p>If you’ve used the planning tools, you’ll have a better idea of how much more to save, to have the retirement you imagined. </p><p>Some employers allow contributions to be paid via a ‘salary sacrifice’ arrangement, which reduces your National Insurance bill. And they may even increase the amount they pay into the scheme if you choose to save more. It’s worth checking! </p><p>Most members making additional voluntary contributions pay in more than £100 per month, but you can put in as little as £10 per month and top up your regular payments or make one-off payments at any time. No matter how big or small your contribution, it all helps.</p><p>There is a maximum amount that you can pay into BRASS. If you want to pay more AVCs, most members can apply to join AVC Extra. <a href="/knowledge-hub/help-and-support/RAYN">Check the Read as you Need guides</a> for the rules that apply to your section of the Scheme.</p><h2>AVCs for IWDC members</h2><p>If you’d like to make extra contributions, you’ll need to speak to your employer. The contributions will be deducted from your pay like your usual pension deductions. </p><p>Get more information on BRASS and AVC Extra <a href="/defined-benefit-members/saving-more-BRASS-AVC-Extra">here</a>.<span style="text-decoration: underline"></span></p><h2>What if the numbers don’t add up?</h2><p>The more you save now, the more time your money has to grow. Over the long-term, the investment returns on your AVCs could make a big difference to the amount you have to live on when you retire.</p><h2>Get advice before making any decisions. </h2><p>We can help you understand the Scheme rules that apply to you and tell you how it works, but we can’t give you advice relating to your personal circumstances. If you need help deciding what to do with your money, you’ll need to talk to a financial advisor. </p><p>Liverpool Victoria has been carefully chosen to give members access to independent financial advice. LV can be contacted on 0800 023 4187. </p><p>You are still free to choose your own Independent Financial Adviser. You can find an IFA in your area at <strong><a href="https://www.unbiased.co.uk/" target="_blank" data-sf-ec-immutable="">unbiased.co.uk</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href="https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en" target="_blank" data-sf-ec-immutable="">Moneyhelper.org.uk</a> </strong>offers free support on a wide range of financial matters, online and over the phone.</p><p>And there’s a wealth of information in the <strong>‘</strong><strong>Resources</strong><strong>’</strong> and <strong>‘In the Scheme’</strong> sections of the RPS website.</p><h3>Sources</h3><p><strong>*</strong>&nbsp; <a href="https://www.aberdeenplc.com/en-gb/news/all-news/uk-retirees-at-risk-of-running-pension-pots-dry" target="_blank" data-sf-ec-immutable="" data-sf-marked="">UK retirees at risk of running pension pots dry</a> </p><p>**&nbsp;<a href="https://www.barnett-waddingham.co.uk/comment-insight/research/gender-pension-gap/" target="_blank" data-sf-ec-immutable="">Bridging the gap: the gender pension gap and what can be done about it</a></p><p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>By the time you reach your 50s you may have a pretty good idea of what you want later life to look like for you. Retirement doesn’t probably feel like a distant concept anymore and you’re starting to give it a lot more thought these days.&nbsp;<br></p><p>If you’re only just embarking on your pension saving journey, you still have a good few years to prioritise retirement planning and to save up for a decent life after work. <br></p><p>Whatever your situation, your 50s is the ideal time to up your saving game and to make the most of the opportunities available to you. Here are a few ideas to help you enhance your pension saving journey and to make sure your retirement savings are on track to provide you with the sort of lifestyle you hope for when you stop work.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h3>Define your retirement goals<br></h3><p>If you haven’t yet given later life a thought, do it now. How do you imagine your lifestyle? You’d probably want to enjoy some treats now and then like a holiday abroad, meals out and taking up new hobbies. Will you have any caring responsibilities or will you want to support a family member financially? <br></p><p>Crystallising your retirement goals now you still have a few years to save up may be just what you need to ensure you have enough to fund them when the time comes. <br></p><p><a href="https://www.retirementlivingstandards.org.uk/" data-sf-ec-immutable="">The Retirement Living Standards</a>* can help you with that. They have been developed to help you picture what kind of lifestyle you could have in retirement. The standards show you what life in retirement looks like at 3 different levels, and what a range of common goods and services would cost for each level. For example, a single person will need approximately £37,300 per year for a comfortable standard of living when they finish work. <br></p><p>If your current level of saving isn’t on target to pay for the standard of living you hope for in retirement, you may need to think about saving more. One way to do this is by paying Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs).</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h3>Consider boosting your savings with AVCs<br></h3><p>You may want to consider paying extra into your pension, if you can. Paying even a little more in to your pension savings now could eventually add up to a lot more to enjoy when you stop work. AVCs provide a real opportunity to build up your savings and make up for lost time.<br></p><p>The main <a href="/defined-benefit-members/saving-more-BRASS-AVC-Extra">AVC arrangement for defined benefit (DB) members</a> of the Railways Pension Scheme is called BRASS. You can pay as little as £2 per week or £10 per month on top of the normal contributions you make to your pension. There’s a maximum you can pay in each year – usually 15% of your gross earnings. If you want to pay more than the BRASS maximum, you can join AVC Extra (not available to Network Rail members). <br></p><p><a href="/iwdc-members/Im-still-working/saving-more">Defined contribution (IWDC) members pay AVCs</a> directly into their investment accounts. <br></p><p>There are many benefits to saving extra with AVCs:<br></p><ul><li>you can save as little as £2 a week</li><li>you don’t need to save a set amount every month</li><li>you can pay into AVCs with money from overtime and bonuses, which don’t qualify for your main scheme pension</li><li>you get tax relief on what you put in (up to Annual Allowance tax limits)<br></li></ul><p>To see how much your RPS income will be, log in to (or register for) your <a href="https://member.railwayspensions.co.uk/login" data-sf-ec-immutable="" data-sf-marked="">myRPS account</a>. Use the ‘Pension Planner’ to model how saving more with BRASS could make a big difference and help you meet your target. <br></p><p>You should also bear in mind that for the 2023-24 tax year there’s an annual pension savings limit that can benefit from tax relief of £60,000 or the value of your taxable earnings, whichever is lower. Read more about this limit below.</p><p><br></p><h3>Are you making the most of your Annual Allowance?</h3><p>Annual Allowance is the limit on the total amount you can save towards your pension in a single tax year before you pay any tax on your pension savings. It is currently either 100% of your annual earnings or £60,000, whichever is lower, unless the Tapered Annual Allowance** applies to you.</p><p>The Annual Allowance renews at the start of every financial year (in April) so it may be worth paying in as much as you can over the next few years to make sure your savings are benefitting from tax relief. Saving tax free for your future is one of the most valuable benefits of paying in a workplace pension and it’s worth taking advantage of all the pros that come with it. That doesn’t mean paying in the full allowance, but paying in as much as is realistic and possible for you at this moment in time. </p><p>You may also be able to carry forward any unused allowances from the last three years.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h3>Your pension savings are invested so compounding is a big plus!<br></h3><p>We’ve covered compounding in previous articles from the pension planning series but we can’t miss to highlight its valuable role in making your money grow, especially now you’re approaching the end of your working life. It’s a key factor when it comes to investing and one of the most significant benefits of having your money invested in a pension. <br></p><p>It is essentially the process of your investments achieving growth not just on the original sum invested but on the growth of it as well. It’s especially powerful if your money has been invested for a while but even if you start saving for a pension now, it will help your money grow. <br></p><p>Compounding only applies to members in the Industry-Wide Defined Contribution (IWDC) scheme and members who pay in Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs) towards their pension.</p><p><br></p><h3>Re-evaluate your attitude to risk<br></h3><p>If you’ve been saving into an IWDC pot or with AVCs for a while, you may want to consider reviewing your investment fund choices now you’re on a down track to retirement. You may have had a riskier approach so far, but it’s perhaps time to reduce your exposure to higher risk funds to ensure you’re not taking any unnecessary risks. The value of money invested can go up as well as down so it’s important to ensure the savings you’ve accumulated to date are ‘safer’ being invested in more ‘stable’ funds which have lower risk of losing value over time.</p><p><br></p><h3>Turn to Pension Wise for free guidance<br></h3><p>Pension Wise, a government-backed service helping people to understand the pension options available to them, offers free, impartial guidance for over 50s. You can book an hour-long appointment with one of their pensions specialists and they’ll talk you through the options available to you and any other things you may need to keep in mind in the run up to retirement.</p><p><br></p><h3>Speak to a financial adviser <br></h3><p>You may want to seek expert financial advice if you have little or no experience of managing your pension and extended finances and don’t feel confident in making decisions about them. Go to <a href="https://www.unbiased.co.uk/" data-sf-ec-immutable="">https://www.unbiased.co.uk/</a> to find an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA) who could help you take control of your financial future.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><br></p><p><em>*Retirement Living Standards – the Standards have been developed by the People and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) and provide a rule of thumb guidance on common costs for three different levels of expenditure in retirement to help pension savers understand how much money they will need to live the lifestyle they want in retirement <a href="https://www.retirementlivingstandards.org.uk/" data-sf-ec-immutable="">https://www.retirementlivingstandards.org.uk/</a> </em><br></p><em></em><p><em>**Tapered Annual Allowance - the Tapered Annual Allowance (TAA) generally applies to those on the highest incomes. This allowance gradually reduces the amount you can save into your pension plan annually depending on your income.&nbsp;It may affect you if your income is over £260,000 (previously £240,000) from 6 April 2023.</em></p>

<p><em>This blog is the first of a series of 3 articles on saving more with BRASS, so stay tuned for more information coming soon.</em><em></em></p><p>BRASS is the main arrangement for members of the Railways Pension Scheme (RPS) who want to pay more on top of the normal contributions they make towards their pension. </p><p>It’s available to all Defined Benefit (DB) active members and is a great way to boost your retirement income. </p><p>BRASS is popular with our members, and we sometimes receive specific questions about different aspects of saving more with it. We’ve explained some of the specifics of BRASS below to help you get to grips with it.<del cite="mailto:Rob%20Hughes" datetime="2025-04-08T07:12"> </del><br></p><p>Please visit the <a href="https://member.railwayspensions.co.uk/defined-benefit-members/saving-more-BRASS-AVC-Extra/saving-more-with-BRASS" data-sf-ec-immutable="">Saving more with BRASS area of the website</a> for more information.&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h4>The fundamentals of BRASS</h4><h3>Who’s BRASS available to</h3><p>BRASS is available to anyone who is a DB active member of the RPS and wants to save more towards their pension. <br></p><p>It may be particularly useful to you if you have additional earnings which don’t quality for your main Scheme pension, such as overtime or bonus payments, for example. </p><p>&nbsp;</p><h3>How to join BRASS</h3><p>To join BRASS, speak to your employer. They’ll provide you with a form you’d need to complete and return to them. You can also complete the form when you <a href="https://member.railwayspensions.co.uk/login" data-sf-ec-immutable="">log into your myRPS account</a>. Once logged in, go to the ‘Planning for your future’ area. Once you’ve completed the form, you can download a copy and email it to your employer. <br></p><p>Any BRASS contributions you decide to make are taken from your pay by your payroll department, before tax. That way, you get tax relief on anything you put in to your pot (up to the Annual Allowance limit).</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h3>How does it work</h3><p>When you join BRASS, you’ll automatically start a Personal Retirement Account (PRA). Think of your PRA account as a separate pot of money your BRASS contributions go into. <br></p><p>Your PRA is separate to your defined benefit pension with the Scheme. The savings you have in it are classed as defined contribution savings and are invested in a range of funds. <br></p><p>The aim of the investments is to help the value of your PRA pot to grow over time. But like any investment, the value of your funds could go up and down. <br></p><p>You can <a href="/defined-benefit-members/saving-more-BRASS-AVC-Extra/brass-fund-choices">select the funds you’d like your pot to be invested in</a> or you can leave that to the Scheme’s investment experts – the choice is yours. </p><p>&nbsp;</p><h3>How much you can save into BRASS</h3><p>You can pay as little as £2 per week or £10 per month (if you are paid monthly) on top of the normal contributions you make to your pension. <br></p><p>There’s a maximum you can pay in each year – usually 15% of your gross earnings. If you want to pay more than the BRASS maximum, <a href="https://member.railwayspensions.co.uk/defined-benefit-members/saving-more-BRASS-AVC-Extra/save-more-AVC-Extra" data-sf-ec-immutable="">you can join another arrangement called AVC Extra (not available to Network Rail members).</a> We’ll cover AVC Extra in a future blog post. <br></p><p>You can change how much you contribute at any time – this is especially useful if you know you have a big bill or expense coming up. <br></p><p>And, you can make one-off payments too. You can make a one-off contribution directly when you <a href="/my-rps">log into your myRPS account</a> if you wish and via payroll. <a id="_anchor_1" href="https://railpen-my.sharepoint.com/personal/jenny_prodanova_railpen_com/Documents/0.Personal/2025/Blogs/BRASS%20QA_March%202025_v4.docx#_msocom_1" name="_msoanchor_1" data-sf-ec-immutable=""></a><a href="https://member.railwayspensions.co.uk/defined-benefit-members/saving-more-BRASS-AVC-Extra/saving-more-with-BRASS" data-sf-ec-immutable="">Find out how to do this on the Saving more with BRASS page.</a> </p><p>&nbsp;</p><h3>Changing your BRASS contributions</h3><p>If you are not in a salary sacrifice arrangement, you can increase, pause or stop your contributions at any time. To do this, log into your <a href="https://member.railwayspensions.co.uk/login" data-sf-ec-immutable="">myRPS account</a> and look for a BRASS e-form in the Planning for the future area of your account. You can also contact your employer directly. <br></p><p>If you are in a salary sacrifice arrangement, there may be an annual window in which you can increase, reduce or stop your BRASS contribution.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h3>What happens to your BRASS contributions if you get a new job</h3><p>If you leave work, you cannot continue to pay into BRASS.<br></p><p>Your BRASS pot will remain invested in your chosen fund(s) until you claim your benefits or transfer to another pension provider.<br></p><p>If you change railway employer, you will stop paying BRASS contributions to your previous employer’s section of the Scheme. If your new employer has a section in the Railways Pension Scheme and you join, you can restart your BRASS contributions by contacting your employer. <br></p><p>Both PRA pots will be kept separate unless you decide to transfer your previous membership along with your BRASS pot into your current membership.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><h3>Transferring your BRASS pot</h3><p>You may be able to transfer the money in your BRASS pot to another arrangement, separately to your defined benefit pension, if you wish. However, you can only do that if you have already stopped paying into BRASS.<br></p><p>To start the process, you can either tell your employer or request a transfer&nbsp;out quote (CETV) when you log into your myRPS account. More information on transferring your BRASS pot is available on the <a href="https://member.railwayspensions.co.uk/defined-benefit-members/saving-more-BRASS-AVC-Extra/taking-my-BRASS" data-sf-ec-immutable="">Taking my BRASS page</a>.<br></p><p>You should think carefully before making a decision to transfer your BRASS pot out of the Scheme. You may want to consider getting financial advice. You can find out more about how do that on our <a href="https://member.railwayspensions.co.uk/pension-essentials/guidance-advice" data-sf-ec-immutable="">guidance and advice</a> page. </p><p>&nbsp;</p><h3>What happens to your BRASS pot if you die in service</h3><p>If you die before taking your BRASS pot, the pot would be included within any tax-free cash lump sum paid to your beneficiaries. The tax-free cash lump sum is paid at the discretion of the Trustee.</p><div><div><div id="_com_1"></div></div></div>