Ladies, get your pension back on track NOW
Money expert and journalist Kalpana shows you how to make sure you have a comfy retirement…
Just as we have the gender pay gap, there’s also a gender pensions gap, with women leaving the workplace with a pension pot typically worth less than half of that of men’s.* Low pay, career breaks and going self-employed are some contributing factors. But there are things you can do to secure a better retirement.
How to boost your pot
If I told you could get ‘free’ money towards your pension, would you say no? Well, you can get just that by boosting what you pay into your workplace pension.
When you pay into a workplace pension, so does your employer. But did you know that if you pay in more, many employers will match your contributions up to a certain amount.
If you are in a position to pay more into your pension, then even a small increase could make a significant difference to your retirement income – especially with the bonus of extra cash from your employer.
So, get in touch with your HR department and ask if they will match pension contributions and if you can pay more.
Self-employed? Unfortunately, there’s no free cash from your boss but you will benefit from tax relief.
Salary sacrifice pensions
Salary sacrifice is a tax efficient way to make pension contributions. Essentially, you give up part of your pay, which the employer then puts into a pension alongside its own contribution.
It’s a tax efficient way to pay into a pension, because it essentially lowers your gross salary, which means both you and your employer pay lower national insurance contributions.
Ask your employer if salary sacrifice is an option and if it is right for you. Go to moneyhelper.org.uk to find out more.
Know what you’re getting
More than half of workers do not know the size of their pension pot, according to the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association.
Most people tend to under-save and overestimate what their pension is worth. But, this is easy to fix.
Get in touch with your pension provider and ask for a forecast statement. Pension providers send a forecast out at least once a year, so make sure you pay attention to it when it arrives.
You should also check how much state pension you are entitled to. Currently, the full state pension is around £185.15 a week, but the actual amount you get depends on your national insurance contributions.
You need at least 35 years of national insurance contributions to receive the full state pension. If you have between 10 and 35 years, you will get a proportion of it. Women tend to accumulate fewer years of
‘You could get “free” money towards your pension’
national insurance contributions due to career breaks.
To see what you will get and when, go to gov.uk/check-state-pension. If you have gaps in your national insurance records, you may be able to fill them with voluntary contributions. You can find out more at gov.uk/voluntary-nationalinsurance-contributions.
It is worth noting that if you are a parent and claim child benefit, then you will accumulate national insurance credits. If you are currently not working, and do not claim child benefit, possibly because of the higher income threshold, then you can still register for it to protect your national insurance credits. Women miss out on as much as £20,000 in state pensions by not making this one important move.
Thinking of stopping your pension?
As the cost of living increases, many people have thought about stopping pension contributions altogether. This is understandable, but before you go down this route, think carefully. By stopping, you will miss out on the free cash from your employer and on investment growth, too. You cannot make up for this.
If you really need to stop your pension contributions, avoid stopping for too long to avoid a pension shortfall.
It may also be worth checking the benefits calculator on Turn2us (turn2us.org.uk) to make sure you’re not missing out on any help that can give you an income boost other than stopping your pension contributions.
‘IT’S NOT A DIET, IT’S A LIFESTYLE CHANGE’
Lorraine Lecky, 37, is from Hackney in London and is a Slimming World Consultant.
I know now there is life beyond yo-yo dieting. Over the years I’d tried every diet going and I always ended up straight back at square one after just a few weeks, feeling like I’d never manage to lose weight. When I joined Slimming World, I realised it was something completely different – it wasn’t a diet, it was a lifestyle change. And the emotional support, ideas and inspiration I got at the group kept me motivated week after week.
I learnt a lot of lessons along the way. One reason my previous weight-loss attempts failed is that I had to give up all the delicious Jamaican food I’d grown up with – and I couldn’t live like that! With Slimming World’s Food Optimising plan, I learnt how to make easy changes to the way I cooked, so I could carry on enjoying all those Caribbean flavours.
These days, I fry saltfish fritters in low-calorie cooking spray and use an air fryer for my fried chicken. They’re just as tasty!
When I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) I felt really low. I needed a crutch to walk and I had debilitating knee pain. Then, as I became slimmer and more active, my mood lifted. While I’ll always have MS, my knees are now pain free and I can walk without any support.
I became a Slimming World Consultant in January, and I love it more than I imagined possible. It’s amazing to see people achieve their dreams.
I’m still very much a member of the group, too, and I thrive on the support from every single person in the room.
Discovering which eating habits had been holding me back was one of the best gifts the group gave me. I’ve acknowledged I’m a snacker now, and I’ve learnt to plan for that by making sure the fridge is always filled with my favourite healthy snacks. My new healthy life has given me so much.
‘I’M NOW PAIN-FREE AND FAMILY TIME IS MORE FUN’
Cath Davies, 54, lives in Prescot, Merseyside, and is a member of Gill Kearns’ Slimming World group.
I joined my local Slimming World group to lose weight for my wedding, and my dress had to be altered from a size 18 to a 12. When I tried it on for the final time with my daughters-in-law Heather and Rohan, and my mum Joan, we all had tears in our eyes. I still can’t believe I achieved that! I couldn’t have done it without my amazing Consultant, Michelle. It was thanks to her that I felt a million dollars on my special day. She passed away last September and I’ll always treasure the memory of her attending my wedding. For that, and so much more, I’ll always be grateful. Before losing weight, I blamed my work shoes for my aching feet. I searched high and low for the perfect pair, but like the stepsisters in Cinderella, I couldn’t get any to fit. It turns out my glass slipper was losing over 5st!
Now I’m pain-free as I walk from aisle to aisle, picking out customers’ online orders at the supermarket where I work.
Family time has become so much more fun too. You know what toddlers are like, they constantly keep you on your toes, and at my heaviest, it was impossible to keep up with my granddaughters. Now I can hold nine-month-old Daisy as we squeal down the slide at the soft-play centre, or crouch on the floor to do a jigsaw with three-year-old Pippy. Exercise is important to me too now, and I love to listen to audiobooks as I walk along Liverpool’s waterfront. At the moment I’m listening to How Much Wine Will Fix My Broken Heart? by Kristen Bailey. My top tip would be, ‘If you don’t ask, you don’t get.’ That’s what we decided in the group when we chatted about asking for food swaps at restaurants.
My husband Paul and I had lunch at our local pub last week, and those words rang in my head as I ordered a jacket potato instead of chips. It’s small changes and decisions that make all the difference.
✱ To find out more about Slimming World and how to join, visit slimmingworld.co.uk or slimmingworld.ie, or call 0344 897 8000 or 01 656 9696.