Church of England Pensions Measure 2018

39 Schemes for church workers

(1) The Board may establish, administer or participate with others in the administration of—

(a) pension schemes for the benefit of church workers;

(b) pension schemes for the benefit of surviving spouses or civil partners and children and dependants of deceased church workers.

(2) The Board must continue to administer or to participate with others in the administration of any pension scheme established or administered under section 27 of the Clergy Pensions Measure 1961 and continuing to have effect under section 1 of this Measure; and the scheme is to be treated as if it had been established under this section.

(3) A deaconess or licensed lay worker who is performing or has performed pensionable service is not eligible to join a scheme established or administered under this section, unless the Board gives him or her permission to do so.

(4) The Board may give a clerk permission to join a scheme established or administered under this section.

(5) A person who is a member of a scheme established or administered under this section is disqualified from continued membership of the scheme if the service performed by that person becomes pensionable service.

(6) In section 17 of the Church Commissioners Measure 1947 (superannuation), at the end insert—

“(4) The Commissioners may, until 31 December 2025, apply capital funds for meeting the cost of any pension or lump sum payable under the Church Commissioners Superannuation Scheme in so far as it is attributable to a period of service before 1 January 1998.

(5) In subsection (4), “capital funds” means funds held by the Commissioners the income of which forms part of their general fund.”