EXCLUSIVE: Roffey Park Institute has informed all 80 employees about the pension changes that came into effect on 6 April.
The leadership institute educated staff about the pension freedoms via a verbal summary given by line managers and an internal email.
The email, which was sent to staff on 2 April, offered employees a guide to the reforms and highlighted the different options available to them going forward, such as taking an annuity, going into drawdown or taking their pension as a lump sum.
It also offered staff one-to-one meetings with the organisation’s pension provider, Standard Life, to discuss their individual requirements and questions.
Roffey Park also makes these personalised meetings with its adviser available to staff bi-annually.
Caroline Disano, head of programme delivery and HR at Roffey Park Institute, said: “At Roffey Park, we regularly consult with and advise our staff of changes that may affect them. An example of this is the recent changes to workplace and private pensions.
“We already offer employees the opportunity to meet with our pension provider a couple times each year, and we have circulated to staff a document from our provider, which details the key changes, and what this might mean to staff.
“For employees, the relaxed pension rules offer them greater freedom in how they access their pensions. It is no longer simply buying an annuity, now they are able to withdraw some, or all, of their money in a lump sum.
“We encourage employees to seek independent financial advice when deciding on what pension arrangements may suit them, particularly mindful of pension scams, and to protect our staff, we have provided guidance from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on protecting their pensions pot.”
