Teach Primary Issue 19.6

2024/25, £49,084. Back in 2005/6 it was only £32,628. But if you were to increase that in line with inflation, it would, in April 2025, be equivalent to £56,153. That is 14.4 per cent higher than the actual current pay. Would I have liked my pension to be 14.4 per cent higher than it is now? Of course I would. So, why isn’t it? The ‘final salary’ pension is based on, unsurprisingly, the salaries at the end of your career and not the salaries you were on 20 years, or more, ago. The TPS does have some protection against this below-inflation pay decline; it does get to use salaries from the past 10 years. But even so, my pension is down over 10 per cent from what it might have been. Learn the rules! But it’s not too late to do something to stop the rot – and you may even have already done it without realising. In England and Wales there is a rule that when you take a break from the pension scheme, your salaries in the years leading up to that break can be used forever in the calculation of your pension (in Scotland and Northern Ireland you need a break from employment). Not only can they be used, but inflation is then added from the date of the break – and so the pension gets full protection against below-inflation pay rises. Had I done this back when I became a head of year for the first time, my pension now would be 10 per cent higher, and that would mean £7,500 more First, let me say that I know I’m fortunate. When I decided to retire, I’d been a primary teacher for 38 years, spending 26 of those as a headteacher. I’d made the decision to go before others decided I ought to, I’d worked with a brilliant financial adviser for a number of years, who helped me plan my post-work life, and I was healthy. All that to say, there is a bit of advice I was given that really influenced my retirement, and I think it’s a useful nugget for almost any teacher planning their next steps. So, let me tell you what happened... My last day of term as a headteacher, back in July 2022, was followed by what felt like a normal summer holiday, (aside from the ‘formal’ handover to my successor halfway through). But once September rolled around, I was no longer bound by school, so my wife, Sue, and I headed off on a glorious six-week trip around Scotland. But on our return, the ‘what next?’ feelings started looming. A friend of mine (not in education) had warned me of doing too much of what you love straight away – he loves golf, and had taken to playing three times a week when he retired, soon finding that when he actually wanted to do other things, he felt obligated to his golfing buddies. So, heeding that advice, I made sure my interests remained varied, and stayed on as a governor at my local primary school, and on the committee of my NAHT branch, joined a gym, bought a bike, and set to my allotment. As time has gone on, I’ve steadily added areas of interest – I’m now a governor in two primary schools and a trustee of a MAT; I’m a churchyard gardener, I’m on the Allotments Association committee, I volunteer for Duke of Edinburgh expeditions, and I play golf and tennis each week. I also host the annual West Sussex Leadership Conference, and I’m the (very part-time) locality lead director for West Sussex’s Teaching School Hub. Importantly (I think) I’ve entrusted a close group of former colleagues to tell me when my time is up in these latter roles – I definitely don’t want to be the old ex-headteacher who stays around too long. So, the message – if you’re lucky enough to be able to – is to do what a very wise and wonderful woman (Jaz Ampaw-Farr) said to me: “in retirement don’t just focus on what you want to do but how you want to feel.” Education Support is the only UK charity dedicated to supporting the mental health of teachers and education staff. Their emotional support helpline is free, confidential and available 24/7 on 08000 562 561. Or learn about their funded Staff Wellbeing Service for schools in Wales: educationsupport.org.uk/wales John Gadd is a former primary headteacher. educationsupport.org.uk 50 | www.teachwire.net How do you want to feel?