Pensions portal problems reported after new firm takes over scheme

Current and former teachers have faced problems getting information about their pensions after management of the scheme transferred to a new firm.

Teachers told Schools Week they had faced sleepless nights and hours trying to get help since the handover, with some fearing data has gone missing and that they won’t receive payments on time.

Indian IT firm Tata Consultancy Services took over the administration of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme (TPS), which has more than 2.2 million members, this month. Outsourcing giant Capita had run the programme for three decades.

Teachers were advised they would not have access to online services relating to their pensions between 21 October and 2 November, while the handover took place.

But some have been unable to access their accounts since the relaunch, while others found errors and gaps in their information.

A spokesperson for the Department for Education, which manages the scheme, said the transition to TCS “involved the safe and secure transfer of millions of member and employer records”.

“We understand and recognise some members are experiencing access issues, and we are closely monitoring the TPS administrator’s work to resolved these as quickly as possible, so members receive the high-quality support they deserve.”

They did not comment on the scale of the issues.

Leaders’ union ASCL said “teething problems” were to “not unexpected”.

Survey findings

Retired IT teacher David Fountain runs Facebook group ‘Teacher Pensions – Teacher to Teacher (UK)’ – a 52,000 member-strong group where current and former teachers have documented a litany of issues since the handover.

Fountain launched a poll of its members on Monday. He acknowledged results are likely skewed towards those facing issues, but the findings suggest at least hundreds of members are affected.

Fountain said: “From what we’re seeing, the pensions that are [already] in payment seem to be being paid.”

But of 396 members who had completed the survey by Friday morning, around 45 per cent (177) said they had been unable to log in to the TPS members area.

Of 218 respondents who could, almost all (99.5 per cent) said their nominated death beneficiary was not shown.

Sixty per cent said they could not see their benefit statement, despite being able to see it before the transfer.

Around 29 per cent respondents could not see their employment history, while of the 155 who could, around one-quarter said it was incorrect.

Fountain said: “I think the ones who are going to be struggling the most are those who are still waiting for their first payments. Those who applied before and have not had anything yet.”

‘I can’t sleep’

Louise Matley, a former head of music from Stroud, is due to retire in early December in order to care for her mother, who has Alzheimer’s.

She described the last week as “a nightmare”, as she was initially unable to access the pensions portal, then found information missing from her records.

“Nothing has ever stressed me out as much as this,” she told Schools Week. “I can’t sleep and I feel shattered.”

She accessed her account to find “a whole year of pensionable service was missing from my employment records” which she put down to “a glitch in the data transfer”.

“Yesterday my employment records had gone, and today I [again] cannot access the website,” she said on Thursday.

For many members, frustrations over the glitches are compounded by issues getting through to the TPS, and a lack of clear guidance when they have managed to speak to staff.

Matley reported spending “over an hour on hold on the telephone on three occasions this week”. When she did get through, she said staff were unable to give her an update on her situation.

‘No user found’

Another retired teacher told Schools Week she had been unable to login since the handover.

“Every time I try I get a message which says ‘no user found matching this record’.

“I have spent seven hours so far trying to get this problem sorted out. Contacting Teachers’ Pensions by phone is expensive, especially when it seems to take well over an hour for someone to pick up the phone.”

The 0345 helpline is free for some callers, but charged at up to 65p by some telephone providers.

Sarah Newton, a former teacher from Cornwall who retired seven years ago, said she logged on on Monday “after a bit of trial and error” to find her pension status had changed from “retired” to “deferred”.

Her portal showed “no P60s , no payslips, no historic secure messages…only some employment history and an average salary statement”. Her death grant nominee was also not listed.

She managed to reach TPS by phone on Thursday following 11 previous attempts, and a handler assured her she would receive her pension when it was due.

“I was so worried I wouldn’t get paid,” she told Schools Week. “I still hope it does actually come through.”

Another retired teacher said she was unable to access her benefits statement or death nomination.

“More worryingly, I’ve moved house twice from the address showing on my profile and when I’ve tried to change it online using the edit, it won’t change.”

Fountain said some members reported their registered email address had been replaced with an email for “somebody in payroll, or an email address they have no idea whose it is”.

He suggested historic issues with the quality of data held by the TPS could be among factors behind the issues.

“I think the ones who are going to be struggling the most are those who are still waiting for their first payments,” he said. “Those who applied before and have not had anything yet.”

‘Teething problems’

Melanie Moffatt, pensions specialist at leaders’ union ASCL, said the union is “aware that some functions have not been working properly since the member portal went live on Tuesday”, but added it is “not unexpected for there to be teething problems following a transition of this size”.

“We are meeting with the transition team on a regular basis and will be informing them of any issues that members are having,” she added.

On 1 November, an update on the TPS website said: “We’ve completed the safe and secure transfer of millions of member records as part of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme administration transition.

“My Pension Online is now available. Members can access guidance on how to use the member portal and get support through live chat and the contact centre.

“Thank you for your patience as we continue to restore our services following the transition.”

It added that “for the next few weeks” it would be “focused on prioritising members who need immediate support and ensuring their enquiries are resolved as quickly as possible”. It asked members to only get in touch with “urgent” queries.

The latest update on the TPS website, from Tuesday, said: “All members can now access their My Pension Online (MPO) account following the transition.”

TCS did not respond to a request for commment.