This website is for members of the Arcadia Group Pension Scheme and the Arcadia Group Senior Executives Pension Scheme.
If you cannot remember which Arcadia pension arrangement you were in during your UK employment, the following should be helpful:
The final salary schemes closed to new joiners in 2005, so if your Arcadia employment started after 2004 you will NOT be a member of a “final salary” pension scheme.
Debenhams
Ex-Debenhams employees who were previously members of the Scheme (at the time known as the Burton Group Pension Fund) transferred their benefits into the Debenhams Retirement Scheme following the de-merger of Debenhams from the Arcadia Group in October 1998. These individuals should therefore contact the administrators of the Debenhams Retirement Scheme using the details below:
Broadstone, Prospect House, Fishing Line Road, Redditch, Worcestershire, B97 6EW
Tel: 01527 396202
Email: debenhams@broadstone.co.uk
Arcadia Group Ireland Pension Scheme
Administration of the Arcadia Group Ireland Pension Scheme is handled by Willis Towers Watson; all relevant correspondence/enquiries should be directed to:
Email: DBTeam2.irl@willistowerswatson.com
Telephone: 00-353-(1) 669 4458
Prudential:
If you applied for membership and had pension contributions deducted from your pay between 2005 and 2012, your contributions would have been paid into the Arcadia Stakeholder Plan administered by Prudential; the relevant contact details are:
Telephone: 0345 070 3333
Email: stakeholder@prudential-pensions.co.uk
Legal & General:
From September 2012 any pension contributions made in respect of you would have been paid into the Arcadia Pension Plan within the Legal & General MasterTrust; the relevant contact details are:
Telephone: 0345 026 7122
Email: employerdedicatedteam@landg.com
You can also use the government’s “find my pension” service to find contact details for a lost pension. The website address is https://www.gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details.
The Scheme is a defined benefit (DB) scheme. This means your pension is calculated based on a prescribed formula that uses the pensionable service you accrued whilst working for the Company as well as your pensionable salary, as set out in the Scheme’s Rules.
Your pension at the date you ceased employment does not change in line with investment performance, it is subject to prescribed increases until you retire.
When you retire, you will have two main options:
- Taking all your benefits as an annual pension, taxed under the PAYE system.
- Exchanging some of your benefits for a tax-free cash sum (subject to the maximum set by HMRC) and taking a smaller taxable annual pension.
If your pension benefits are less than £1,500 a year you might be able to exchange your entire pension for a taxable lump sum, provided certain conditions are met.
Details of your benefits can be provided to you by the Scheme’s administrator, Barnett Waddingham. You can access this information online by logging onto your pension self-service account.
Your Normal Retirement Date (NRD) is the date at which you can take your pension without needing consent from the Trustees and from which your pension is due.
Please note, this date is specific to the Arcadia scheme and is not the same as your State Pension Age.
You may be able to take your pension earlier than this date but as your pension would be payable for a longer period it would be reduced accordingly.
You can find out your NRD by logging onto your pension self-service account and accessing the benefit statement that was issued to you during Summer 2024.
Yes.
Currently you can retire from age 55, which is the minimum pension age under legislation. This is due to increase to age 57 from 6th April 2028.
You might be able to retire earlier than age 55 on the grounds of serious ill-health.
You should bear in mind that if you take early retirement your pension will be reduced because it will be paid for longer.
Yes. If you decide to take your pension later than your NRD then your pension will be increased to take account of this.
Your pension will usually be increased between the date you left pensionable service and your retirement date.
Once in payment, your pension will usually increase each year.
Further information is available on the Scheme factsheet published to your pension self-service account, which provides more detail.
For most members, your spouse or civil partner will be entitled to a pension.
Further information is available on the Scheme factsheet published to your pension self-service account, which provides more detail.
For most members, your spouse or civil partner will be entitled to a pension.
Further information is available on the Scheme factsheet published to your pension self-service account, which provides more detail.
The Schemes are set up under discretionary trusts. In the event that a lump sum benefit is payable following the death of a member, the Trustee will use its discretion to decide which beneficiaries receive the lump sum death benefit.
This typically means that it will be exempt from inheritance tax. When deciding the beneficiaries, the Trustee will consider the member’s wishes. It is therefore important to keep your Expression of Wishes information up to date to notify the Trustee who you would like to receive any lump sum death benefits.
An Expression of Wishes form is available on the Schemes’ website, which you should complete and return to Barnett Waddingham.
The fastest and most secure way to update your UK bank account details is online using your pension self-service account. This can be done by clicking the ‘Update Bank Account’ button in the ‘Payroll Details’ section.
If your bank account is held overseas, please contact Barnett Waddingham to request the relevant overseas payment mandate.
To update your address details, you will need to log onto your pension self-service account and provide details of your current address.
This can be done by clicking the ‘Update’ button in the ‘View Details’ section.
All requests for quotations should be directed to the Schemes’ administrator, Barnett Waddingham. Requests for quotations can be made through your pension self-service account or by email to ArcadiaMembers@Barnett-Waddingham.co.uk.
A quotation will be provided as soon as possible, within the required statutory timescales.
The process for settling benefits will be detailed in your quotation, which will include all of the necessary forms and a checklist of the requirements.
In general, you will be required to provide:
- Proof of identity and age (e.g. birth certificate, passport or driver’s licence)
- Proof of any change of name (e.g. marriage certificate or deed poll)
- All required forms for your chosen benefit (e.g. payment details)
Once issued, your quotation will be visible on your Pension Self-Service account to refer to at any time.
You will be able to upload your completed forms and identification documents using your Pension Self-Service account.
All notifications should be directed to the Schemes’ administrator, Barnett Waddingham.
You will be asked to confirm the member’s date of death, the member’s next of kin and contact details for the person dealing with the member’s estate.
Some general announcements are available on the Schemes’ website here.
Copies of recent correspondence issued to you personally are available on your pension self-service account.
Provided you have not started drawing your pension, you may be able to transfer your Scheme benefits to another pension arrangement.
All deferred members have a statutory right to request one transfer value statement in any 12-month period, as long as they are at least 12 months away from their Normal Retirement Date. Members can expect to receive a transfer value quote within three months of their request.
Making decisions about your finances can be complex so we would strongly recommend you take financial advice from a professional adviser authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The adviser should be qualified to advise on Defined Benefit (DB) transfers and should be independent of the Scheme. In some cases you will be required to take financial advice which you will need to pay for.
If you do not have a financial adviser, you can find one in your local area using the following website:
www.moneyhelper.org.uk/retirement-adviser-directory
You should check to make sure your chosen adviser can provide advice for DB benefits and is FCA authorised here – https://register.fca.org.uk/s/
Further information is available on the Scheme factsheet published to your pension self-service account, which explains more about the process and points for consideration should you wish to explore this option more fully.
Barnett Waddingham continue to look after the administration of the Scheme, and you should contact Barnett Waddingham with any questions.
The Schemes are working towards completing a buy-out with Aviva, which will protect members benefits for the long term. Further details were included in the letter dated 06 February 2023, sent to members from the Trustees.
You can read more about Aviva here.
A general announcement was also issued on 10 February 2023, a copy of which can be found here.
Barnett Waddingham continue to look after the administration of the Scheme at this time. In the future, Aviva will take over responsibility for paying your pension. We will inform members in advance of this change taking place.
The Trustees are required to ensure the address records that we hold for you are kept up-to-date and accurate. The Trustee has enlisted the help of Target Professional Services (UK) Limited (Target), a specialist in providing member-tracing services to pension schemes to verify members’ details. Target might call you or write to verify that the details we hold for you are correct. Tracing exercises will be run at a minimum of once a year.
If you wish to read more about Target, you can visit their website at: www.targetprofessional.co.uk