FOI-03427

<p>Thank you for your request for information about the following:</p>

<p><strong>Request</strong></p>

<p><em>‘I am writing to make a request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
<p>Please provide the following information relating to the administration of NHS Pensions.</p>
<p>1. Delays in Pension Lump Sum Payments
For each of the last five financial years (2019/20 to 2023/24, or the most recent five years available), please provide:</p>
<p>a) Delay durations by payment value</p>
<p>The number of days between the contractual due date and the actual payment date of pension lump sums, broken down into the following lump sum value bands:</p>
<ul>
<li> £100,000 – £149,999</li>
<li> £150,000 – £199,999</li>
<li> £200,000 – £249,999</li>
<li> £250,000 – £299,999</li>
<li> £300,000 and above</li>
</ul>
If available, please include for each band:
<ul>
<li> Number of cases</li>
<li> Average delay (days)</li>
<li> Median delay (days)</li>
<li> Longest delay (days)</li>
</ul>
b) Interest benefit from delayed payments
For the same period, please provide:
<ul>
<li> Any internal calculation of interest retained, saved, or earned as a result of lump sum payment delays.</li>
<li> If no calculation exists, please confirm this.</li>
<li> Any financial assessments, instructions  or internal reporting documents discussing the financial impact or benefit associated with delayed lump sum payments.</li>
</ul>
c) Performance KPIs
Please provide:
<ul>
<li> The Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) currently used to measure performance relating to initial pension payments and lump sum timeliness, including:
<li> Target timeframes</li>
<li> Measurement methodology</li>
<li> Escalation or breach thresholds</li>
</ul>
d) KPI Monitoring and Governance
Please provide documentation describing:
<ul>
<li> How KPI performance for pension payments is monitored</li>
<li> Reporting frequency</li>
<li> Governance arrangements, including:</li>
<li> Committees or management bodies responsible for review</li>
<li> Actions taken when KPIs are missed</li>
</ul>
2. McCloud RSS (Remediable Service Statement) Processing
Please provide the following information covering the period from 1 October 2024 to the present date:
a) Statements issued
<ul>
<li> Total number of McCloud Remediable Service Statements processed and issued to members.</li>
</ul>
b) Outstanding cases
<ul>
<li> Total number of cases still awaiting RSS production.</li>
<li> Total number of outstanding cases of those who have retired</li>
</ul>
c) Prioritisation policy
Please provide:
<ul>
<li> Any policies, operational guidance, flowcharts, process documents, or instructions used to determine the prioritisation of RSS case processing, including criteria relating to:</li>
<li> Retirement or ill-health status</li>
<li> Age of member</li>
<li> Financial hardship</li>
<li> Complaint escalation</li>
<li> Any service-level targets or timeframes’</li></em></p>
</ul>

<p>[On 3 January 2026 you clarified your request as follows]</p>

<p><em>‘Question 1(a) – Delay durations by payment value</em></p>

<p><em>Please base the financial year grouping on the Actual Payment Date of the pension lump sum.</em></p>

<p><em>Question 1(b) – Interest benefit from delayed payments</em></p>

<p><em>For clarity, I am requesting any information held by NHSBSA relating to the financial impact or benefit of delayed pension lump sum payments.</em></p>

<p><em>This includes, but is not limited to:</em></p>

<p><em>
<ul>
<li> Any calculations, estimates, or assessments of interest retained, saved, or earned due to payment delays;</li>
<li> Any internal reporting, financial assessments, instructions, or briefing documents discussing such impact or benefit.</li></em></p>
</ul>

<p><em>If no such calculations, assessments, or documents are held, please confirm this explicitly.</em></p>

<p><em>I am not seeking the creation of new calculations.</em></p>

<p><em>Question 2 – McCloud RSS (Remediable Service Statement) Processing</em></p>

<p><em>Please provide the requested information for all RSS types, namely:</em></p>

<p><em>
<ul>
<li> Retired members</li>
<li> Active and deferred members</li>
<li> Members imminently retiring</li></em></p>
</ul>

<p><em>Where data is already categorised by RSS type, please provide the breakdown.
If not, aggregated totals across all RSS types are acceptable.’</em></p>

<p>The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) received your request on 3 December 2025, with clarification received on 3 January 2026.</p>

<p>We have handled your request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA).</p>

<p><strong>Our response</strong></p>

<p><strong>1. Delays in Pension Lump Sum Payments</strong></p>
<p><strong>For each of the last five financial years (2019/20 to 2023/24, or the most recent five years available), please provide:</strong>
<strong>a) Delay durations by payment value
The number of days between the contractual due date and the actual payment date of pension lump sums, broken down into the following lump sum value bands:</strong>
<strong><ul>
<li> £100,000 – £149,999</li>
<li> £150,000 – £199,999</li>
<li> £200,000 – £249,999</li>
<li> £250,000 – £299,999</li>
<li> £300,000 and above</li>
</ul></strong>
<strong>If available, please include for each band:
<ul>
<li> Number of cases</li>
<li> Average delay (days)</li>
<li> Median delay (days)</li>
<li> Longest delay (days)</li></p>
</ul></strong>

<p>A copy of the data is attached.</p>

<p>Data provided is as of 26 January 2026 and shows members with an expected payment date within the requested time frame. Please note, this data does not include any members whose status is set as a dependant of any kind (Pensioner (Child), Pensioner – Divorcee from Clean Break Order, Pensioner (Dependant), Pensioner – Divorcee from Earmarking Order) or who are marked as “Deceased”.</p>

<p>Members may appear in more than one section or scheme if they have received multiple lump sum payments.</p>

<p>Please note that the “longest delay” column (“MAXIMUM_DELAY” in the attached data file) includes data outliers due to a number of complex reasons on individual cases that are outside the control of the NHS Pension Scheme administrators. For example, in some cases members do not claim their benefits until well after the due date. We are unable to comment on individual cases.</p>

<p><strong>b) Interest benefit from delayed payments</strong></p>
<p><strong>For the same period, please provide:</strong>
<strong><ul>
<li> Any internal calculation of interest retained, saved, or earned as a result of lump sum payment delays.</li>
<li> If no calculation exists, please confirm this.</li>
<li> Any financial assessments, instructions or internal reporting documents discussing the financial impact or benefit associated with delayed lump sum payments.</li></p>
</ul></strong>

<p>The NHS Pensions Scheme is an unfunded occupational scheme, and there are no fund or investments that pensions are paid from. The cost of pensions is met annually by HM Treasury. The Scheme is currently operating with a net cash surplus (negative Net Cash Requirement), due to receipts exceeding the payments made, and this surplus is returned to HM Treasury during the following financial year. If payments are forecast to exceed income within a financial year, the balance of the funding required is requested from Parliament through the annual Supply Estimates process. The cash flows of the Scheme are classed as Annually Managed Expenditure (AME) for government accounting purposes.</p>

<p>Where the pension and/or lump sum are not paid within one month of the day after the member retires from pensionable employment, or the first day on which all information is available to calculate the pension and lump sum, interest is payable in accordance with the NHS Pension Scheme regulations. Interest is payable at the Bank of England base rate from the day after the member retires from pensionable employment to the date of payment and compounded with quarterly rests.</p>

<p>The Bank of England Base Rate details can be found at the following link: <a href="https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/monetary-policy/the-interest-rate-bank-rate">https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/monetary-policy/the-interest-rate-bank-rate</a></p>

<p><strong>c) Performance KPIs</strong></p>
<p><strong>Please provide:
<ul>
<li> The Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) currently used to measure performance relating to initial pension payments and lump sum timeliness, including:</li>
<li> Target timeframes</li>
<li> Measurement methodology</li>
<li> Escalation or breach thresholds</li></p>
</ul></strong>

<p><strong>Target timeframes</strong></p>

<p>The target for First Award payments is for 99.50% of payments to be made within 30 days from due date, or date of receipt of all relevant information.</p>

<p>We aim to pay all members within 30 calendar days of receiving all necessary information. Most applications are processed within this timescale, though some more complex cases take longer.</p>

<p>Additionally, if the number of NHS staff retiring at one period of time is high this can impact the workload of the Awards team which can impact the KPIs.</p>

<p>We are doing everything we can to process payments as quickly as possible and proactively contact members whose First Award falls outside of our target to keep them updated. Under NHS Pension Scheme regulations, interest is paid on any pension benefits delayed beyond one calendar month.</p>

<p>In January 2026, 92% of new pension claims were paid within the 30-day target. Claims not paid within this timeframe were, on average, paid 22 days late.</p>

<p><strong>Measurement methodology</strong></p>

<p>Calculation of a % score is derived by identifying the [Total Cases Completed Within Target] divided by [Total Cases Completed in Period].</p>

<p><strong>Escalation or breach thresholds</strong></p>

<p>Target is breached when KPI adherence falls below 99.5%. First tier escalation for NHSBSA is to NHS Pensions’ Head of Service, second tier escalation is to NHSBSA’s Director of NHS Pensions, third tier escalation is to the NHSBSA’s Chief Operating Officer. First Awards performance is reported to DHSC and the NHS Pensions Board – further detail is provided below. Non-compliance with the statutory target for First Awards has been reported to The Pensions Regulator by NHSBSA.</p>

<p><strong>d) KPI Monitoring and Governance</strong></p>
<p><strong>Please provide documentation describing:</strong>
<strong><ul>
<li> How KPI performance for pension payments is monitored</li>
<li> Reporting frequency</li>
<li> Governance arrangements, including:</li>
<li> Committees or management bodies responsible for review</li>
<li> Actions taken when KPIs are missed</li></p>
</ul></strong>

<p><strong>How KPI performance for pension payments is monitored</strong></p>

<p>KPI performance is monitored twice daily by NHS Pensions’ Workforce Management Team who are responsible for resource planning and allocation and produce month to date figures at the beginning and end of each day.</p>

<p>In some cases, we need additional information from the member or their employer before we can process their payment. Our 30-day window does not start until we have all the information required.</p>

<p>The figure for the current wait time is based on the number of days logged in our Operations Manager system between the “start” and “end” date of our Awards process for awards and ill health awards.</p>

<p>It does not include sub awards processing time, or cases that are not in process and logged on the system. The actual date we received log a member’s retirement application and the date of payment issuance may be differ slightly to date of receipt.</p>

<p><strong>Reporting frequency</strong></p>

<p>KPI performance is reported twice daily to the NHSBSA’s Leadership Team. The Leadership Team including relevant organisational Directors and Chief Executive Officer (CEO).</p>

<p>A weekly KPI performance report is produced which goes to the NHSBSA Leadership Team, DHSC and is shared with the NHSBSA board.</p>

<p>Monthly KPI performance is reported to DHSC as part of a monthly accountability meeting, the McCloud Programme Board and NHS Pensions Service Board, attendees include Senior Managers of the NHSBSA.</p>

<p>The KPI performance for First Awards is reported monthly on the NHSBSA website:</p>

<p> <a href="https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/current-processing-times-nhs-pensions">https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/current-processing-times-nhs-pensions</a></p>

<p>Quarterly KPI performance is reported to the NHS Pensions Board who provide assurance over and governance of the Pension Scheme’s administration.</p>

<p><strong>Governance arrangements, including:</strong><br></p>
<p><strong>Committees or management bodies responsible for review</strong></p>

<p>NHS Pensions Senior Management Team, NHS Pensions Service Board, NHSBSA Leadership Team, DHSC: NHS Pensions Board and NHSBSA Board.</p>

<p><strong>Actions taken when KPIs are missed</strong></p>

<p>When KPIs are missed recovery plans are put in place. Subject to materiality, this may involve:
<ul>
<li> Recruitment and training to increase our capacity.</li>
<li> Deployment of additional colleagues from areas with minimal impact on other deliverables.</li>
<li> Redirecting planned intakes of new recruits to support recovery activities.</li>
<li> Prioritisation of urgent cases to ensure those most in need are addressed first.</li>
<li> Identification and implementation of process efficiencies.</li>
<li> Analysis of management information to better understand and manage workloads including lessons learned and subsequent identification of preventative measures.</li>
<li> Proactive communications for affected Scheme members.</li></p>
</ul>

<p><strong>2. McCloud RSS (Remediable Service Statement) Processing</strong></p>
<p>The challenges of McCloud delivery are impacting all Public Service Pensions Schemes, with schemes reporting risks to timescales. With almost 4m members, the scale of the NHS Pension Scheme adds an additional layer of complexity.</p>

<p>We apologise to all NHS Pension Scheme members affected by the McCloud Remedy for the delays in our scheme and assure our members that we are working tirelessly to deliver Remediable Saving Statements (RSS) as quickly as possible.</p>

<p>We will update affected members as much as possible about when you can expect to receive your RSS. Once a revised timeline has been agreed, we will also share this on our website.</p>

<p><strong>Please provide the following information covering the period from 1 October 2024 to the present date:</strong>
<strong>a) Statements issued</strong>
<strong><ul>
<li> Total number of McCloud Remediable Service Statements processed and issued to members.</li></p>
</ul></strong>

<p>There have been 7,002 statements issued as of 26 January 2026.</p>

<p><strong>b) Outstanding cases</strong>
<strong><ul>
<li> Total number of cases still awaiting RSS production.</li>
<li> Total number of outstanding cases of those who have retired</li></ul></strong></p>

<p>As of 26 January 2026, there are 419,675 Immediate Choice cases awaiting RSS production.</p>

<p>The total number of outstanding Immediate Choice cases of those who have retired is 405,794.</p>

<p><strong>c) Prioritisation policy</strong></p>
<p><strong>Please provide:</strong>
<ul><strong>
<li> Any policies, operational guidance, flowcharts, process documents, or instructions used to determine the prioritisation of RSS case processing, including criteria relating to:</li>
<li> Retirement or ill-health status</li>
<li> Age of member</li>
<li> Financial hardship</li>
<li> Complaint escalation</li>
<li> Any service-level targets or timeframes</li></p>
</strong></ul>

<p>Our timelines for RSS delivery separated members into different ‘cohorts’. To date, date we are prioritising RSS for our most complex cases - those members who are likely to have been most at risk of financial detriment as a result of McCloud. The prioritisation of bulk dispatch RSS by members most likely at detriment has been agreed with DHSC.</p>

<p>The following webpage link provides more information:<br>
<a href="https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/public-service-pensions-remedy-mccloud/making-your-decision-about-your-nhs-pension-benefits"> https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/public-service-pensions-remedy-mccloud/making-your-decision-about-your-nhs-pension-benefits</a></p>

<p>In particular, members affected by the McCloud Remedy may wish to note:</p>

<p><strong>You may be able to ask for your choice sooner</strong></p>

<p>You do not need to do anything to get your choice - we’ll automatically contact remedy members. For most remedy members, waiting to hear from us will not have any negative effect on their options, but we understand there are some circumstances where remedy members need to make their choice more urgently.</p>

<p>A) You can ask to make your choice sooner if one of the following applies:</p>

<p>1. You’re a retired member with a shortened life expectancy of less than 12 months. You can apply to get your choice as soon as possible whether your benefits have been paid as one lump sum or you receive them as monthly payments.<br>
2. Whilst a member of the 2015 scheme, you applied for ill health retirement during the remedy period - between 1 April 2015 and 31 March 2022 - but you were not successful and currently receive an NHS pension.<br>
3. You’re still working but you’ve received a diagnosis of serious ill health that may mean you're eligible for Tier 2 ill health pension benefits – which you can apply to take as a single lump sum if you have a shortened life expectancy of less than 12 months.</p>

<p>This means you’ll be able to decide sooner about the benefits that are right for you and for your family.</p>

<p>B) You can also ask to make your choice sooner if you are in receipt of benefits and meet all the following criteria:</p>
<ul>
<li> you had ‘tapered protection’ from moving to the 2015 Scheme - this means you were able to stay in the 1995/2008 Scheme after 1 April 2015, but had to move into the 2015 Scheme before 31 March 2022</li><br>
<li> you had Special Class or Mental Health Officer (MHO) status during this period</li><br>
<li> you reached the Scheme’s maximum service limit of 45 years during this period, or you would have done so had you not moved into the 2015 Scheme</li></p>
</ul>

<p>For a small number of remedy members who meet all the criteria above and already in receipt of benefits, you may need to repay overpaid pension depending on which Scheme benefits you choose. The sooner you can make your choice, the less you may need to repay.</p>

<p>To request your choice early, please email us at <a href="mailto:fast-tracksupport@nhsbsa.nhs.uk">fast-tracksupport@nhsbsa.nhs.uk</a> and we’ll get back to you within 7 to 10 working days.</p>

<p>Please let us know which of the reasons from the list above apply. For example, state A) 2. or B), so we can give you the appropriate support quickly.</p>

<p><strong>Data Queries</strong></p>

<p>Please contact <a href="mailto:foirequests@nhsbsa.nhs.uk">foirequests@nhsbsa.nhs.uk</a> ensuring you quote the above reference if you have any specific questions regarding this response; or, if you feel you may be misunderstanding or misinterpreting the information; or, if you plan on publishing the data.</p>

<p><strong>Reusing the data and copyright</strong></p>

<p>If you plan on producing a press or broadcast story based upon the data, please contact <a href="mailto:communicationsteam@nhsbsa.nhs.uk">communicationsteam@nhsbsa.nhs.uk</a>. This is important to ensure that the figures are not misunderstood or misrepresented.</p>

<p>The information supplied to you continues to be protected by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 and is subject to NHSBSA copyright. This information is licenced under the terms of the Open Government Licence detailed at:</p>

<p><a href="http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/">http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/</a></p>

<p>Should you wish to re-use the information you must include the following statement: “NHSBSA Copyright 2026”. Failure to do so is a breach of the terms of the licence.</p>

<p>Information you receive which is not subject to NHSBSA Copyright continues to be protected by the copyright of the person, or organisation, from which the information originated. Please obtain their permission before reproducing any third party (non NHSBSA Copyright) information.</p>



Tags: NHS Pensions
Organization: Freedom of Information Disclosure Log