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Older Teachers Risk Losing Out by Working Beyond 60

ended 27. September 2025

Financial experts warn that thousands of teachers who are members of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme (pre-2007 entrants with a Normal Pension Age of 60) could be losing out financially by continuing to work past their pension age—without even realising it.

Unlike many modern pension schemes, these teachers are not automatically told that working beyond age 60 may deliver little or no additional benefit. Their pension is not uplifted by any late-retirement factors, nor is it backdated to age 60. Apart from any increases linked to salary rises, they can effectively “lose” years of guaranteed income they would otherwise have received.

For example, a teacher who works from 60 to 63 may only build a small amount of extra pension during that period, but in doing so forfeits three full years of pension payments—potentially tens of thousands of pounds.

There is an option for teachers to take their pension benefits at age 60 while continuing to work, but this is not automatic and many are unaware of it. Even then, some could still see their pension reduced under the abatement rules, meaning part of their pension is cut if their post-retirement salary plus pension exceeds their previous earnings.

The issue recently came to light when a teacher, visiting an independent financial adviser for the first time, queried their options. When the adviser called the Teachers’ Pension Scheme helpline, they were told that teachers are not routinely informed of this as it might be seen as “encouraging them to retire.” Shockingly, the school’s HR representative had not raised the issue either, and the teacher said they had never received any guidance from their union.

We’d be very interested to hear from teachers, unions, and HR professionals on this issue. Have you or your colleagues been made aware of the implications of working beyond 60?

2 responses from the Newspage community

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Editor
Scott Gallacher
Director at Rowley Turton
As a financial adviser, I am always cautious when clients with defined benefit pensions, such as final salary schemes, consider working past retirement age or deferring benefits. Many schemes apply a late retirement factor, increasing your pension if you delay, or allow a lump sum to backdate payments—sometimes creating tax planning opportunities. But some schemes, such as the pre-2007 Teachers’ Pension Scheme, offer no such adjustment. This means members delaying benefits can effectively lose years of income. I recently helped a teacher, already working beyond 60, who came to me having only just discovered this issue. It is worrying that people are making life-changing decisions without HR or union guidance. In this case, the teacher may have lost tens of thousands of pounds in pension income simply through lack of information. Teachers deserve better so they can make informed choices about their future.
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Omer Mehmet
Managing Director at Trinity Finance
It’s shocking that thousands of teachers could be losing out simply for doing what they thought was the right thing — carrying on working. Most assume extra years automatically mean extra pension, but in the pre-2007 scheme that’s not the case, and many are left tens of thousands worse off. The fact this isn’t proactively explained by TPS or flagged by HR is a dereliction of duty. Teachers deserve transparency so they can make informed choices, not financial penalties hidden in the small print.