Newsletter - December 2025

With ‘My Pension’ you can take control of your local government pension. Our modern and easy-to-use system allows you to view your pension information confidently and securely. Join around 29,000 other members and start exploring…

▪ Online annual benefit statements, broken down into simple chunks to help you understand your pension benefits.

▪ A retirement-planning tool which allows you to set retirement goals and see whether you are on track to reach them.

▪ Benefit calculators to help you work out what will happen to your benefits if you leave the LGPS, take voluntary retirement or die before you retire.

▪ How to update your personal details online.

Login to ‘My Pension’

Register for ‘My Pension’

Our ‘My Pension’ support page provides advice on how to register, videos on how to use the website and much more.

Active pension accounts, deferred pensions and pensions in payment are adjusted each April in line with the cost of living.

The increase is based on the September-to-September change in the Consumer Prices Index (CPI). The CPI increase for the year up to September 2025 was 3.8%.

Whether you're looking to understand a bit more about your pension, planning for retirement or just refreshing your knowledge, we will be holding online pension training events throughout 2026.

The courses we ran in 2025 were very well received by members.

·       96% of attendees stated that their knowledge and skills had been improved by taking the courses.

·       40% stated the courses were excellent, 53% good.

In November 2024, the Chancellor announced a "landmark" pensions review called ‘Fit for the future’, which included the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS). The stated objectives of this review were to increase further consolidation of asset pools, tackle inefficiencies, reform pension fund governance and drive more investment in the UK.

The LGPS is fully funded with good investment returns and has achieved many successes in recent years. These include the establishment of LGPS asset pools. Every fund in England and Wales invests a proportion of its assets through investment pools and the intention is that over time, most assets will be invested in this way. However, the Government felt that pooling had not delivered to its full potential and that change is needed to ensure that the scheme continues to perform in the long term in the best interests of members, employers, local communities and the wider UK economy.

The Government set out key reforms to investment management, outlining minimum standards of pooling for all LGPS pools. After considering proposals put forward by each of the eight pools earlier this year, the government has expressed support for keeping six of the eight pools. The proposal put forward by the ACCESS pool (where ESPF invests) was not supported by government when assessed in line with the new proposals. 

As a result, ESPF had to identify a new pooling partner. On 25 September 2025, the Pension Committee made an in-principle decision to become a shareholder in the Border to Coast Pensions Partnership pool. The decision marks a significant milestone for ESPF ahead of the deadline from government to transition assets to the new asset pool by 31 March 2026.

We know that not everyone wants to talk on the phone or has time to write to us by email. Or maybe you want help when the office is closed? So, we’re rolling out a new live chat service in 2026.

ESPA – East Sussex Pension Assistant will be available on selected pages of the East Sussex Pension Fund website.

ESPA is designed to simulate human conversation, answering your general pension questions. It cannot answer member-specific questions (e.g. how much is my pension worth?). 

ESPA will work best when it can answer questions from a knowledge bank or when it can easily identify website pages relevant to your query. ESPA is a basic digital assistant, but can provide a useful complement to assistance from our Team.

Once launched we’d be keen to receive your feedback, as this will help us to continually improve this service. Keep your eyes peeled for the image below…

To help you get to know your pension better, we’ve put together a list of 5 features of the Scheme we think all LGPS members should be aware of. How many did you know?

1.     Your pension is payable at your Normal Pension Age. For most people it’s the same as State Pension Age. You can choose to take it earlier, currently from age 55 with reductions (though this will rise to age 57 in 2028) or later, up to age 75 with increases. Find out more about retirement.

2.     You can pay more towards your pension. You can boost your LGPS pension by paying towards Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs) or Additional Pension Contributions (APCs). Both methods have different features and benefits. To find out which one might be right for you, take a look at our dedicated webpage.

3.     You have LGPS life cover. If you die while paying in, a death in service grant of 3 x your pensionable pay will be made to your nominee(s). You can nominate whoever you’d like to receive your death grant by making or changing a nomination using ‘My Pension’. There are also dependants’ pensions payable for a spouse, civil partner, eligible cohabiting partner, and eligible children. Find out more about Survivor Benefits.

4.     Your pension isn’t affected by investment performance. The LGPS is a defined benefit pension scheme meaning that the pension you receive isn’t dependant on your contributions or the performance of investments. Instead, it’s calculated using a set formula.

5.     You can pay less towards your pension. If you move to the 50/50 section, you’ll pay half the contributions in exchange for half the pension build-up, but you will still benefit from full life cover. You can find out more on our ‘’50/50’ webpage. And when you are ready you can re-join the main section of the Scheme.

East Sussex Pension Fund has published the draft version of its Report & Accounts for 2024/2025.

The Report & Accounts highlight the important issues affecting the Fund over the previous twelve months to 31 March 2025, together with full details about its performance in administering the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS).

Explore 2024/25 Report and Accounts here

The start of a new year is a great time to look at your finances. High inflation in recent years means that your money may not stretch as far as it used to. You might be thinking about paying extra now to increase your income in later life. 

MoneyHelper’s free budget calculator will help you track how much money is coming in and how you are spending it. Knowing how to manage your budget is an excellent first step towards your financial goals, whether your aim is to hit your savings target, get out of debt or boost your retirement savings.

 The budget planner will give you:

• a place to record all your spending, so you won’t forget anything.
• a breakdown of how you spend your money.
• personalised tips to make the most of your money.

MoneyHelper is a government-backed service that helps make your money and pension choices clearer. You can find more information about their services and how to find free, impartial guidance on the MoneyHelper website.

If you leave the Scheme before you retire, you can choose what to do with your pension.

There are different options available to you depending on how long you have been in the scheme and your age at leaving.

Explore more about leaving the Scheme

For general queries on your pension:

Call: 0300 200 1022 (lines open from 9 am until 4 pm)

Email: [email protected]

Write: Pension Services. East Sussex County Council, County Hall, St Anne's Crescent, Lewes, East Sussex, BN7 1UE

If your query relates to ‘My Pension’ (member self-service website)

Call: 0300 200 1027