Plan your retirement with confidence

Most members can claim their pension from their normal pension age, which for the LGPS is linked to the State Pension age. Depending on your age and circumstances you may also be able to retire earlier — for example, flexible retirement from age 55 with your employer's agreement, or on ill-health grounds at any age.

Start with the basics — housing, food, bills, travel — then think about the things that make retirement comfortable: hobbies, holidays, helping family. The Retirement Living Standards below are a useful benchmark for what each lifestyle tier typically costs in the UK.

The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association publishes three retirement living standards — minimum, moderate, and comfortable — with annual income figures for single people and couples. They're a helpful sense-check against your expected pension income.

Six to twelve months before you want to retire, get an up-to-date benefit estimate, decide on your retirement date, think about whether you want to take a tax-free lump sum, and notify your employer using the correct forms. GMPF will then send you a retirement pack to complete.

1. Decide your retirement date. 2. Ask GMPF for an estimate. 3. Notify your employer. 4. Complete your retirement paperwork. 5. Choose your pension options (including any lump sum). 6. Return your forms to GMPF. 7. Receive your first pension payment on the agreed date.

Try the GMPF pension calculator, MoneyHelper’s free impartial guidance, and the GOV.UK State Pension forecast. Links to all three are in the Tools & resources section below.