The University of Lincoln has introduced a website to help staff with retirement planning.
The site, launched with provider Retirement Education Services in response to the removal of the default retirement age, forms part of the university’s retirement benefits package, which also includes fitness classes at the campus sports centre, pension awareness days, phased retirement planning, one-to-one financial advice with pensions advisers, and financial education services.
Ian Hodson, reward and benefits manager, said: “It is about supporting employees with decision-making around all aspects of retirement. At universities, there will be a high percentage of the workforce heading towards retirement because the academic age always tends to be fairly high. We also have a lot of changes with our pension schemes at the minute. All that means it is a good time to roll out things that support the concept of retirement.”
The university’s 1,500 staff can log in to the site and view a selection of 25 videos about wellbeing, financial planning, and dealing with the social transition to retirement.
The site also includes information about the university’s three final salary pension schemes – a local government plan, a teacher’s pension scheme and the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS). Proposals to close the USS and implement a career average revalued earnings structure were agreed by the USS’s joint negotiating committee in May, while the Hutton review of public sector pensions in March made 21 recommendations for change.
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Update: 9 June – University of Lincoln were among the big winners at the Employee Benefits Award 2011. The university won Most effective benefits strategy in a public sector organisation and Most effective benefits strategy for working parents and/or carers. Congratulations to University of Lincoln!