Request

I  request for a copy of the Assessment Handbook or the like. That is used to determine my rights to a pension for my disabled adult son.

I wish to see the guidance that is issued by the NHS Pensions to the medical assessor to make a determination.

On 25 July 2025 you clarified your request with the following:

I thus feel I need some thing like the source documents behind the pension rules and the instructions/ framework the doctor is instructed to work within to make the assessment?

It would also be good to understand what the NHS definition of “Earning a Living is”?

Does the ability to “Earn a living “ only refer to a point in time eg Date of my Death  or can a claim occur later but be related to the original condition he has ?

Response

Under Section 21 of the FOIA we are not required to provide information in response to a request if it is already reasonably accessible to you.

Information on the Survivor’s Guide on NHS Pensions website is available at the following link:

https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/sites/default/files/2024-08/Survivors%20Guide%20%28V12A%29%2004.2024.pdf

Page 6 of the above link may be particularly useful to you.

Earning a living’ is not defined in the regulations. The Scheme’s medical adviser (SMA) will assess any medical evidence provided at the date of death of a member to see if the claimant is able to undertake regular employment in the general field of employment in order to support themselves to live independently on a daily basis.

A children’s pension does not form part of the member’s estate. It is paid to the person who has care of the child(ren) or the child’s own bank account, even if they are a minor.

The appropriate claim form for payment of children’s pension is available from our website at:

https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/nhs-pensions

Please see the following link to view the section 21 in full - https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2000/36/section/21