The Teachers’ Pensions (Amendment) Regulations 2012

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations, which come into force on 1st April 2012, make amendments to the Teachers’ Pensions Regulations 2010.

The amendments—

(a) provide that heating, lighting and water provided free of charge and council tax paid are not subject to the one-sixth limitation of the aggregate of the amounts mentioned in the relevant paragraphs of regulation 15 and regulation 16 (regulation 3);

(b) clarify the process governing the repayment of overpayments of pension paid from previous years (regulation 4);

(c) remove the limitation on a person obtaining a lump sum and serious ill health commutation after the age of 75 (regulations 5, 6 and 7);

(d) remove the limitation on a person obtaining a lump sum in respect of family benefit relating to a person who had died after reaching the age of 75 (regulation 8);

(e) update references to Academies and Academy agreements in accordance with the Academies Act 2010 (regulations 9 and 10);

(f) amend Schedule 3 to provide new percentage rates for employees’ ordinary contributions which are to be calculated monthly, by reference to the full-time equivalent annual rate of each employee’s contributable salary for that month (regulation 11);

(g) make provision for rounding to the nearest £100 when determining the annual uplift to the amount of additional pension that can be purchased (regulation 12); and

(h) substitute a reference to the Secretary of State for a reference to the General Teaching Council for England, which is being abolished on 1st April 2012 (regulation 13).

An impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as it has no impact on businesses or civil society organisations. The instrument has a minimal impact on the public sector.