Benefit Statement

We’ve assumed that the money in your pension account will continue to be invested in the same funds (or Multi Asset Portfolio) you invest in now and in the same proportion until your target retirement date. Please bear in mind that the actual investment returns will depend on the types of funds you invest in and may be different from the assumptions used. The assumptions we’ve used this year have changed since your last statement and are shown in the table below.

In working out the yearly income your personal account could get you, we have assumed:

1. An annuity rate (cost of buying each £1 per year of pension) based on your individual target retirement date, sex and date of birth.
2. The pension you buy doesn’t increase in payment.
3. The pension will be payable monthly.
4. The pension will be payable for the rest of your life, for a minimum of five years.
5. The pension doesn’t pay a pension to anyone else when you die.
6. That you don’t take any money from your pension account as tax-free cash when you take your benefits. If you decide to take tax-free cash, your annuity will be smaller.

For the purposes of any drawdown illustration provided, we have assumed:

1. Inflation is 2.5%.
2. An investment growth based on the funds you are currently invested in.
3. That your drawdown income increases each year in line with inflation.

We have changed the way we calculate the amount you may receive as an annual pension since last year. You may see a significant difference when comparing this figure to the one shown in previous benefit statements because of these changes.

The previous illustration assumed:

1. The pension you bought would increase annually in line with increases in inflation (the Retail Prices Index), assumed to be 2.5% per year, whereas this year we’ve assumed the pension you buy doesn’t increase in payment.
2. 50% of the pension would continue to be paid to a person who is three years older than you (if you are a woman) or three years younger than you (if you are a man) on your death, whereas this year we’ve assumed the pension doesn’t pay a pension to anyone else when you die.

For the purposes of any drawdown illustration provided, last year we assumed:

1. An investment growth of the Atlas Multi Asset Portfolio 3 fund, whereas this year we’ve assumed as investment growth based on the funds you are currently invested in.

The amount of any pension payable under the Scheme for you will depend on considerations that may be different from any assumptions made by us. These include the actual performance of investments and the ultimate cost of securing an income (such as an annuity) at the time you take your benefits.