Request

You asked us:

I have made a previous request FOI-02580 but missed opportunity to respond to clarification request. my original request was as follows:

How many  1. active and 2. deferred members of 1995 scheme are there who are or were aged 60 or over [ie having not taken 1995 pension at NRA]. Could you provide a breakdown for each year and of ages [eg 60, 61, 62, 63, 64 , 65, 66, over 66].

And finally how many 60 or over members, either a. active or b. deferred, have taken 1995 pension via PR route since October 23 and at what ages.

in response to your request for clarification, yes indeed this is what i'm asking:

1. How many members [active or deferred, specified] with unclaimed, eligible 1995/2008 scheme service have passed age 60, broken down in years by their age today
2. How many members [active or deferred, specifie] claimed partial retirement in the 1995 scheme since it became possible on 01/10/2023, over their NRA,  broken down by their age at point claiming Partial Retirement?

Basically i'm interested in finding out how many members are blissfully unaware that they were losing out on pension payments by not retiring.

Our Response

We have handled your request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA).

I can confirm that the NHSBSA holds the information you have requested and a copy of the information is attached.

We write to all members approaching normal pension age with information, tailored to their individual circumstances, about their entitlement to claim benefits and how to apply for their NHS Pension. We’re only able to write to NHS Pension Scheme members if we hold their contact information. It is therefore vital that all members keep their contact details up to date and inform NHS Pensions if there are any changes. To check and update their information, deferred members who have left the NHS Pension Scheme can log on to the My NHS Pension portal or contact NHS Pensions or complete the change of address form available on our website. Active members should inform their employer of any changes to their address or contact information.

As the request has specified 1995 and 2008 sections of the NHS Pension Scheme, the data has been split into three different categories, as each section has a different Normal Pension Age (NPA). The NPA for 1995 section is 60, and for 2008 section is 65. Additional factors which might reduce this – such as MHO or Special Class Status – are not considered.

Each member has subsequently only been counted once in the dataset; in the event they are over NPA in both 1995 AND 2008 section, they have been reflected under that grouping.

Members are defined as Active if they are contributing to any NHS Pension; they may not be actively contributing in the 1995 or 2008 section.

For Q1, Age is based on 4 June 2025. Members are in scope if they have any unclaimed, eligible benefits to claim in the 1995 or 2008 section. They may already have claimed some benefits in either or both schemes.

For Q2, Age is based on the payable date of the Partial Retirement Award. Members are in scope if they have any claimed any 1995 or 2008 benefits on Partial Retirement on or after 1 October 2023. They may already have claimed some benefits in either or both schemes, and subsequently may have claimed the remainder of their benefits.

Data Column Definitions

• Status (Char): Set to Active if the member is actively contributing to any NHS Pension Scheme. Otherwise set to Deferred.
• Type (Char): Reflects if the member is Over NPA in 1995 section, 2008 section or both, at either Current Date (Q1) or Payable Date (Q2).
• Age (Int): The member's age based on their Date of Birth, at either Current Date (Q1) or Payable Date (Q2).
• Volume (Int): The volume of unique members which is in scope for each Status, Type and Age.

Data Queries

Please contact foirequests@nhsbsa.nhs.uk ensuring you quote the above reference if you have any specific questions regarding this response; or, if you feel you may be misunderstanding or misinterpreting the information; or, if you plan on publishing the data.

Reusing the Data and Copyright

If you plan on producing a press or broadcast story based upon the data please contact communicationsteam@nhsbsa.nhs.uk. This is important to ensure that the figures are not misunderstood or misrepresented.

The information supplied to you continues to be protected by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 and is subject to NHSBSA copyright. This information is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence detailed at:

Open Government Licence v3.0

Should you wish to re-use the information you must include the following statement:

“NHSBSA Copyright 2025”
This information is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence:
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

Failure to do so is a breach of the terms of the licence.

Information you receive which is not subject to NHSBSA Copyright continues to be protected by the copyright of the person, or organisation, from which the information originated. Please obtain their permission before reproducing any third party (non NHSBSA Copyright) information.