If I Knew Then What I Know Now! Planning for retirement

last month, Debt Today Free Tomorrow ran Part One of our two-day workshop: Planning for Retirement, helping individuals and families prepare for financial security in later life. A very special thanks to all who attended and contributed it was a lovely session and we hope you gained some useful information. (Please click on the photo to see all photos)

If I Knew Then What I Know Now: A Message to Parents and Grandparents About Retirement Planning

There’s a quiet truth many of us discover too late: retirement doesn’t just happen—it has to be planned for. And while we can’t turn back the clock, we can help the next generation make wiser choices now.

If I knew then what I know now, I would have started saving earlier. I would have talked more openly about money, pensions, and the future—not just with financial advisors, now is the time when sitting around the dinner table you should speak to your children and grandchildren.

According to Mr MoneyJar, saving just £275 a month from age 22 puts you on track for a comfortable retirement with a 5% return based on you retiring at 67 you could build a pot of £560,000. Yet research shows that 53% of 18–28-year-olds haven’t even started a pension. That’s not just a statistic—it’s a wake-up call.

So let’s start the conversation. Share your story. Talk about the lessons you’ve learned. Help your loved ones understand, the importance of workplace pensions, and the freedom that comes from financial security.

Retirement planning isn’t just about money—it’s about dignity, choices, and peace of mind. And the earlier we prepare, the better the outcome.

Let’s make sure the next generation can say, “I’m glad I knew then what I know now.”

Many of you may not be aware that the UK government is currently conducting the Third Independent State Pension Age Review, which includes proposals to increase the State Pension age in future decades. This review could have far-reaching consequences for when we retire, how long we work, and whether vulnerable groups are protected. That’s why it’s vital we engage now—before the feedback deadline of 24 October 2025.

What Is the Review About?

Led by Dr Suzy Morrissey, this legally mandated review will explore:

• Whether State Pension age should be linked to life expectancy
• How to ensure long-term sustainability of the pension system
• International models for automatic pension age adjustments

The findings will inform future legislation and could affect millions of people across the UK.

What’s Being Proposed?

These proposals could mean:

• People born in the 1970s and later may need to work until age 70
• Retirement planning becomes more uncertain
• Vulnerable groups may face disproportionate hardship

 Why Is This Review Necessary?

The UK is experiencing a demographic shift:

• The number of people aged 85+ is projected to double by 2045
• By 2070, nearly 1 in 4 people will be over 65
• State Pension spending has increased by 70% over the past 20 years

This puts pressure on public finances, prompting the government to consider reforms. But raising the pension age too quickly or unfairly could harm those in manual jobs, with health conditions, or limited private savings.

️ Who Can Give Feedback?

Everyone. The review welcomes views from:

• Individuals (workers, retirees, carers, students)
• Advocacy groups and charities
• Financial professionals and academics
• Local councils and community organisations

You don’t need to be an expert—just someone with lived experience or concern about how pension age affects real lives.

These are the questions that you will be required to answer:

Call for Evidence: Questions

4.1 Life Expectancy

a. What are the advantages and disadvantages of linking State Pension age to life expectancy?

b. How would linking State Pension age to life expectancy impact upon intergenerational fairness?

4.2 Sustainability

c. What role, if any, should State Pension age have for managing the cost of the State Pension in the longer term?

d. What are the advantages and disadvantages of using State Pension age to manage the cost of the State Pension in the longer term?

e. What other factors relating to sustainability should the Government consider when determining State Pension age? What are the advantages and disadvantages of using these factors?

4.3 Automatic Adjustment Mechanisms

f. What are the advantages and disadvantages of using Automatic Adjustment Mechanisms to make changes to State Pension age (i.e. if a certain factor changes, State Pension age is automatically increased or decreased as a result).

g. What factors could be considered for use in an Automatic Adjustment Mechanism, and why?

4.4 Factors for setting State Pension Age

h. What other factors do you think the government should consider when making decisions regarding State Pension age?  What are the advantages and disadvantages of using these factors?

i. Which of these factors (life expectancy, sustainability and other factors) do you think are most important for the Government to consider when making decisions regarding State Pension age, and why?

j. How might changes to State Pension age impact people differently? Which groups of people, regions or nations may be most impacted by changes to the State Pension age, and why?

✍️ How to Submit Your Views

You can respond by:

• Email: Independent.StatePensionAgeReport@dwp.gov.uk
• Post: State Pension Age Review – Independent report 2nd Floor, Caxton House Tothill Street London SW1H 9NA

Anyone can respond to the Third Independent State Pension Age Review—and the government is actively encouraging a wide range of voices to take part before the deadline of 24 October 2025.

️ Who Can Submit Evidence?

Here’s a breakdown of who is eligible and encouraged to respond:

✅ Individuals

• Workers of all ages
• Retirees and those approaching retirement
• Carers and people with long-term health conditions
• Students and younger people concerned about future pension access

✅ Community Organisations

• Advocacy groups like Debt Today Free Tomorrow
• Charities supporting older adults, carers, or marginalised communities
• Faith-based and grassroots organisations

✅ Professionals & Experts

• Financial advisers and pension specialists
• Academics and researchers in social policy, economics, or public health
• Legal professionals working in benefits, housing, or employment law

✅ Public Sector & Local Authorities

• Councils and regional bodies
• NHS and social care professionals
• Housing and welfare teams

✅ Employers & Trade Unions

• Businesses with older workforces
• Unions representing manual, public sector, or precarious workers

✍️ How to Respond

You can submit your views by:

• Email: Independent.StatePensionAgeReport@dwp.gov.uk
• Post: State Pension Age Review – Independent report 2nd Floor, Caxton House Tothill Street London SW1H 9NA

Responses can be formal or informal—anything from a detailed report to a heartfelt letter or a few bullet points. Every perspective helps shape a fairer future.

Below is the response I have submitted to the response.

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Debt today Free Tomorrow Response to the Third Independent State Pension Age Review

 

4.1 Life Expectancy

a. What are the advantages and disadvantages of linking State Pension age to life expectancy?

Advantages:

• Aligns pension policy with demographic trends, helping ensure long-term affordability.
• May promote fairness across generations if increases in life expectancy are evenly distributed.

Disadvantages:

• Life expectancy is not uniform—those in deprived areas, manual jobs, or with chronic health conditions often live shorter lives and spend fewer years in good health.
• For the BME community, systemic inequalities in healthcare, housing, and employment contribute to lower life expectancy and poorer health outcomes, making a uniform pension age inequitable.
• Linking pension age to life expectancy risks penalising those who cannot work longer due to physical or mental health limitations, especially in marginalised communities.

b. How would linking State Pension age to life expectancy impact upon intergenerational fairness?

• It could improve fairness if each generation receives a similar proportion of life in retirement.
• However, younger generations face greater economic insecurity, housing instability, and precarious employment. Asking them to work longer may compound these challenges.
• For BME communities, intergenerational fairness must also account for historic disadvantage, lower lifetime earnings, and reduced access to private pensions.
• Without disaggregated data and targeted policy responses, linking pension age to life expectancy may entrench inequality rather than resolve it.

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4.2 Sustainability

c. What role, if any, should State Pension age have for managing the cost of the State Pension in the longer term?

• State Pension age can play a role in managing costs, but it must be balanced with social justice.
• Cost-saving should not come at the expense of those least able to work longer or save privately.
• For BME individuals, who are more likely to experience employment discrimination, health disparities, and financial exclusion, raising the pension age could increase hardship.
• Other levers—such as progressive taxation, pension reform, and tackling inequality—should be considered alongside age adjustments.

d. What are the advantages and disadvantages of using State Pension age to manage the cost of the State Pension in the longer term?

Advantages:

• Directly reduces expenditure by delaying eligibility.
• May incentivize longer workforce participation.

Disadvantages:

• Risks increasing poverty and hardship among older adults unable to work longer.
• May shift costs to other parts of the welfare system (e.g. disability benefits, housing support).
• Could undermine public trust in the pension system.
• For BME communities, this approach may disproportionately affect those in low-paid, physically demanding roles, and those with limited pension literacy or access to financial advice.

e. What other factors relating to sustainability should the Government consider when determining State Pension age? What are the advantages and disadvantages of using these factors?

Suggested factors:

• Healthy life expectancy
• Regional and occupational disparities
• Economic inactivity due to ill health or caring responsibilities
• Gender differences in employment and savings
• Ethnic disparities in health, income, and pension access

Advantages:

• Provides a more nuanced and equitable framework for decision-making.
• Recognizes the diversity of lived experience across the UK, including the BME community.

Disadvantages:

• Adds complexity to policy design.
• May require more targeted interventions and data collection.

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4.3 Automatic Adjustment Mechanisms

f. What are the advantages and disadvantages of using Automatic Adjustment Mechanisms (AAMs)?

Advantages:

• Offers transparency and predictability.
• Reduces political interference in pension age decisions.

Disadvantages:

• May lack flexibility to respond to social or economic shocks.
• Risks overlooking regional inequalities and vulnerable groups.
• Could lead to automatic increases without adequate public scrutiny or support.
• For BME communities, automatic mechanisms may fail to account for structural inequalities unless equity is built into the design.

g. What factors could be considered for use in an Automatic Adjustment Mechanism, and why?

• Cohort-based life expectancy
• Healthy life expectancy
• Dependency ratio (workers vs pensioners)
• Employment rates among older adults
• Regional deprivation indices
• Ethnic disparities in health and income

These factors reflect both demographic and socioeconomic realities and help ensure fairness in automatic adjustments.

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4.4 Factors for Setting State Pension Age

h. What other factors should the government consider? What are the advantages and disadvantages of using these factors?

Additional factors:

• Occupational health risks and physical demands of work
• Access to private pensions and financial literacy
• Impact on unpaid Carers and those with disabilities
• Regional disparities in life expectancy and health outcomes
• Ethnic disparities in employment, savings, and health

Advantages:

• Promotes inclusive and compassionate policymaking.
• Helps protect those most at risk of hardship, including BME individuals who face multiple layers of disadvantage.

Disadvantages:

• Requires more granular data and tailored policy responses.
• May challenge the simplicity of a single national pension age.

i. Which factors are most important for the Government to consider, and why?

• Healthy life expectancy, regional inequality, and ethnic disparities should be prioritized.
• These reflect real-world capacity to work and retire with dignity.
• Sustainability is important, but must be balanced with fairness and compassion.

j. How might changes to State Pension age impact people differently? Which groups, regions or nations may be most impacted, and why?

• Manual workers, carers, and those with long-term health conditions will be disproportionately affected.
• Women, especially those with interrupted work histories, face greater pension insecurity.
• Regions such as Scotland, Wales, and the North of England have lower life expectancy and poorer health outcomes.
• The BME community may be especially impacted due to:
  • Lower lifetime earnings and limited access to private pensions
  • Higher rates of economic inactivity due to health or caring responsibilities
  • Systemic barriers to employment and financial inclusion
• Changes could deepen existing inequalities unless mitigated by targeted support and flexible retirement options.

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Final Statement

Debt Today Free Tomorrow urges the government to adopt a fair, inclusive, and compassionate approach to State Pension age reform. Sustainability must not come at the cost of dignity. We call for policies that reflect the diversity of lived experience and protect those most vulnerable to hardship—including those in the BME community.

 

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