Elected Member Pensions (LGPS)

In most cases, no consent is required from your authority but a formal determination is required if you are: 

• A member of the London Assembly 
• A member of the Common Court of the City of London 
• The Mayor of London 

Elected members are not automatically enrolled in the LGPS. 

You must complete this Opt-in form if you wish to apply to join the LGPS and return it to the payroll provider for each authority that pays you an allowance.

Your membership will start from the first day of the next payment period after your application is received. Membership cannot be backdated. 

If you receive allowances from more than one eligible body, you must complete a separate opt‑in form for each one. 

As an elected member, you are an office holder, not an employee. In most cases, you receive allowances rather than a salary. 

Your pensionable pay is the total amount paid under your authority’s approved remuneration scheme for: 

• Basic allowance 
• Special responsibility allowance 
• Relevant allowances (for combined or combined county authorities) 
• Any salary paid to certain elected mayors 

Please note: travel and subsistence payments are not pensionable.

• Your contribution rate is based on your annual pensionable pay, using the same contribution bands as other LGPS members. 
• Your ‘employer’ pays contributions at the same rate as for other LGPS members. 

You can also choose to move into the 50/50 section, where: 

• You pay half the normal contributions, and 

• You build up half the normal pension while you are in that section. 

You can find out more about LGPS contribution rates for 2026/27 here. 

Each year you are in the LGPS, you build up pension worth 1/49th of your pensionable pay for that year (or 1/98th of your pensionable pay if you are in the 50/50 Section). This is added to your ‘pension account’.

Every April, the total value of your pension account is adjusted in line with the cost of living, helping to protect it against inflation.

When you retire, the total balance in your pension account is converted into an annual pension payable for life.

You can also choose to take part of your pension as a tax‑free lump sum, normally up to 25% of the value of your LGPS benefits. For every £1 of annual pension you give up, you receive £12 as a lump sum, subject to HMRC lump sum limits.

You can increase your LGPS benefits by paying: 

• Additional Pension Contributions (APCs) – to buy extra pension or cover periods of approved absence.
• Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs) – including salary sacrifice shared cost AVCs (where offered).

Find out more about increasing your benefits here. 

Some restrictions apply because you are an office holder. Full details are available in the introductory guide below. 

If you receive allowances directly from more than one eligible body (for example, a council and a fire authority), you can: 

• Join the LGPS for each role, and 
• Build up separate LGPS pension accounts for each body 

Each body is treated as a separate Scheme employer. 

You may be able to transfer pensions from another scheme into the LGPS, normally within 12 months of joining.

If you transfer in final salary benefits, they will be converted into an equivalent amount of CARE pension in the LGPS.

You can usually also combine previous LGPS councillor or elected member service with your new elected member pension account, although some exceptions apply.

If you leave the LGPS before you retire and have at least two years’ membership, your pension benefits will be ‘deferred’. This means they’ll be held for you until you are ready to retire.

You can take your pension from age 55 if you leave office. If you take it before your State Pension age, it will normally be reduced because it is being paid earlier.

Your pension is paid for life and normally increases each year in line with the cost of living.

The Government has announced that the earliest age you can take your pension will increase to 57 from April 2028. The LGPS regulations have not yet been updated to reflect this change.

If you become seriously ill and have completed at least two years’ membership, you may be able to receive your pension straight away. 

From day one, the LGPS also provides life cover and survivor benefits in the event of your death. These may include: 

• An immediate lump-sum payment. 
• An ongoing pension for your spouse, civil partner or eligible cohabiting partner. 
• Pensions for any eligible children.