Request

The number and % of total female members of the 1995 scheme who have had a 5 year or more break in service. The number and % of total of male members of the 1995 scheme who have had a 5 year or more break in service. To help clarify the FOI question I am seeking to identify three numbers/percentages - A, B, C.

Number A is the total number of staff who were members of the 1995 pension scheme, regardless as to whether their final salary can be linked to this scheme post 2008 and 2015, deferred, deceased or have retired. Please can you also split this number into total male (No. A1) and total female (No. A2) members.

Number B is the number of these members, included in Number A, who have had a 5 year break or more in service since 1995 but who returned to work in the NHS and rejoined the pension scheme (this could be to any of the 3 schemes depending when they came back after the break including those that are deferred, deceased or retired). The question specifically seeks to identify the number and therefore % of people who are not/ have not been able to link their final salary at retirement to the 1995 scheme  because they have had a five year break or more. Please can this also be split into the total male (No. B1) and the total female (No. B2) members.

Finally can this be shown as a percentage by sex, so the % of the male 1995 members who have had a five year break or more (No. C1) and have returned to the NHS pension scheme and the % of the female 1995 members (No. C2) who have had a five year break or more and have returned to the NHS pension scheme.

To answer your questions specifically:

The period of time to look for the 5 year break is from commencement of an individual in the 1995 scheme to date.

The question specifically relates to the 1995 section and not the 2008 section.

The break in service relates to any 5 year period which disqualifies the member from linking their final salary to the 1995 scheme of which they were previously a member.

Response

There are a total of 2,208,854 individuals with service in the 1995 section. This includes all historic records or members who are pensioners or deceased, as well as all current active and deferred members. Members with no eligibility in the scheme – i.e. those who have refunded all of their contributions, or transferred them to a different scheme – are excluded. 1,656,913 are female (75%) and 551,941 are male (25%).

250,988 of these members had a 1995 section employment cease, followed by a 5 year or more break, before returning to the pension scheme (in any of the 3 schemes). 209,823 are female (84%) and 41,165 are male (16%).

This does not reflect those who have been unable to link their final salary at retirement to the 1995 scheme due to a five-year break. For example, a member may have terminated a 1995 section post on 31 December 2000, and returned to a new 1995 section post on 1 January 2006, before retiring in 2007; final salary would not be a factor.

There are 627,327 members (including deceased and pensioners) who have some de-coupled (unlinked) 1995 service, and also some 2015 service. 493,760 are female (79%) and 133,567 are male (21%).

The data provided in this FOI response counts all members of the 1995 section, including those working in clinical and non-clinical roles.