Teachers' Pension calculator
The Teachers' Pension career average scheme builds your pension from 1/57 of your pay every year, revalued to retirement. Enter your pay and service for a plain estimate.
How the career average scheme works
The current Teachers' Pension is a career average scheme, not a final-salary one. Each year you earn a pension slice worth 1/57 of your pensionable pay for that year. That slice goes into a running pot and is revalued every year until you retire, at a rate of the Consumer Prices Index plus 1.6% for active members. Because every year is banked and grown on its own, your pay across your whole career shapes the pension, not only your salary at the end.
This tool keeps the maths simple. It assumes your pay roughly keeps pace with revaluation, so each year stays worth about a fifty-seventh of your current pay in today’s money. The estimate is your pay divided by 57, then multiplied by your years of service. Treat it as a guide. Your official annual benefit statement from Teachers' Pensions is the figure to rely on.
Worked example
Take pensionable pay of £40,000 and 30 years in the career average scheme. Each year builds £702 of pension, because £40,000 divided by 57 is £701.75. Over 30 years that comes to about £21,053 a year, or £1,754 a month, roughly 52.6% of the pay used here. Any faster accrual you have paid for would lift these figures.
Common questions
How does the career average Teachers' Pension work?
Each year you build a pension slice worth 1/57 of your pensionable earnings for that year. The slice is added to your pot and revalued every year, so early service keeps its value. When you retire, all the slices are added together to give your yearly pension.
What counts as pensionable earnings?
Your regular salary plus items such as overtime and some allowances. It is broadly your gross teaching pay. Use your actual pensionable pay rather than a rough salary figure for a closer estimate.
How accurate is this estimate?
It is a guide only. It assumes your pay keeps pace with the scheme revaluation, so each year stays worth about £702 of pension in today’s money. Your official Teachers' Pensions benefit statement is the definitive figure.
Can I build up pension faster?
Yes. The standard rate is 1/57 of pay a year, but you can pay more to accrue at 1/55, 1/50 or 1/45 through the faster accrual option. This tool uses the standard 1/57 rate.