Hi, I am 45,have increasing disabilities, have MS for at least 7years, work 22.5 hrs/week for NHS, still want to work but think only yrs left in me. Does anyone know anything about I’ll health retirement, how much would it be worth and how would one go about it?
Hi Rose,
First, are you a member of a work pension scheme? If you’re not, ill health retirement will not be an option, because it’s basically a way of paying your pension early, if you’re demonstrably too ill to work.
How much it might be worth depends on the rules of the scheme, how well it’s been doing, and how long you’ve been a member, so really no way of saying.
It is unsusual for anyone to be offered ill health retirement unless they’ve already been off sick for quite some time, and it seems unlikely they would be able to return, even with “reasonable adjustments”.
Schemes vary as to whether you must be unfit to work at all, at anything, or only unfit for the role you were employed for. This matters, because if it’s a requirement that you must be unfit to work full stop, it would mean you couldn’t collect your pension early AND go on to accept a less demanding job elsewhere - you’d have to choose whether it would be better for you to get the pension early, or just change jobs.
Tina
Hi Rose - I am currently going through this process. I am a Band 6 & down to 1 day a week & just feel the time is right to finish. You can get an estimate of what your pension would be worth by contacting Payroll & asking for whoever deals with pensions in your trust (assuming you have paid in!). The first thing I did was speak to my GP & got him to sign me off. Then your Manager needs to refer you to Occ Health for assessment, they fill in a form, you fill in a form & your Manager fills in a form & it gets sent to Atos for a decision. After I had my Occ Health assessment, I got the impression from the Dr that I would probably be accepted for Tier 2 which would mean I would be financially better off retired than working!
I did this 18 months ago. I retired through ill health from the NHS.
Like Sarah says you need to be off sick for a while and all adaptions must have been done to show that your employer has tried to make it possible for you to continue working. This was done with me and I carried on for a further 2 years with adaptions then was forced to stop and was off sick again.
I was awarded Tier 2 as they decided that I was unable to carry on working anywhere in any role so had a lump sum and a monthly pension for the rest of my life. Like Tina says though it may be that they think you could continue working in another role outside of the NHS so they would then award you Tier 1.
PM me if you need any more info.
Shazzie xx
Hi Rose,
I retired by ill health 6 years ago, however it took 2 years to process. It started with going on sick for 6 months full pay ( i thought I was going to recover and get back to work at first) , then getting half pay for 6 months, and then good year after that I eventually retired (teachers pension). Its not the same with everyone, but it can take a while to gather all the proof and medical reports and attend medical assessments (OHT). In my case the paper work was soooo slow, and most of the specialists and doctors were never around ( away on holiday or courses) when I needed them.
I had to gather proof that I could not work in any form (even outside of teaching) for as little as a few hours a week, and for the rest of my life, and that was hard to prove…“that it was not possible for someone to invent a cure that would help me in the distant future”. How can anyone know whats round the corner? Well anyway, at the end, I got a lump sum and monthly pension.
Im not familiar with the Tiers, but I do know that most work places tend to adapt to your needs, and will work around you. Helping you by allowing you to go part time, less stressful work, flexy hours, desk work instead of heavy labour, and so on until you find it impossible to work.
Almond xx
You could always have a chat with your union rep’ if you have one. I had to take ill health retirement from District Nursing when I injured my back. The RCN were really helpful although I was in hospital for 3 weeks. I had been a Nurse for 10 years but they doubled my pension as if I had been working 20 years and I had a lump sum and now have a monthly pension. I did go back to Practice Nursing and informed them but as I was earning below the threshold they set for me it was OK, although I couldn’t pay any more in to the pension scheme. It has probably all changed as that was in 1989 and I was only 29 at the time. Good luck.
Not sure if you’re considering going part-time – not always a good idea because it can adversely affect your pension, it may be better financially to make a clean break.
What you must do is familiarise yourself with all the options and then go for the one that’s best for you. And don’t assume that your employer is always on your side.
Please contact TPAS http://www.pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk/ who give free informal advice but can also give a projection of your state pension when it is due.
Obviously there’s a difference made in the recent Budget.
G
I know this is an old post but I find myself in the same position of needing to go for ill health retirement. I work in the NHS as a dentist for the past 30 years and was diagnosed with ppms in 2015. Have coped with it all with every few days off but have been struggling for the past 6 months. I dont want cancel patients last minute so have kept going as long as I could. Self referred to Occ Health who seemed supportive at first and support ill health retirement but yesterday when I asked about the tiers said I would probably get tier1. If I felt I could continue work it would be easier to continue with the job I am familiar with in familiar surroundings with people I know and support me. I feel very distressed and dont know where to go from here. Would be very grateful for any advice as tier 1 would not allow me to easily support myself and I dont believe I could do another form of employment to any reasonable standard as an employer would expect.
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Hi lesleypaterson
sorry to hear about your situation. I’d start with your union for advice. Was it an oh dr who said you’d get tier 1 or an advisor. If advisor asks for a dr assessment. Tier 2 in the nhs is obviously the best tier to get but they have made it extremely difficult to get now due to the financial side of things.
good luck and speak with your union. Ultimately it’s up to the pensions comittee as to which tier your offered and the year you joined the scheme. Make sure your specialist is on your side and agrees you cannot work in any capacity as this will really support your case. Hope you get the result you want x
Thanks loola. I dont have a union as a dentist working in an NHS practice we are classified as self employed. I joined the NHS scheme in 1990. My neurologist has been in touch and fully supports me and has said he doesn’t believe it would be possible for me to continue working. I hope his report carries enough weight. It’s very difficult to make the Doctirs you deal with who are not neurologists realise what goes on with you on a changing daily basis. Your reply is very much appreciated
I agreed sadly a lot of the medical professionals don’t understand ms as many don’t specialise in neuro as you’re unlikely to cure anything. Might be worth keeping a daily diary of symptoms and show it to oh. You need them on your side to ensure the best outcome possible. Good luck x
Hi
I’m a primary school teacher, I have been in the profession for 24yrs. I started to become unwell 3yrs ago and was diagnosed with fibromyalgia, which I now know was wrong as I have recently been diagnosed with MS. I have had a number of absences over the past 3 yrs and am currently off again now. I used to work full time, I was Senco and in the senior leadership team. I have dropped the two role and now work part time. Last year I worked 4 mornings but still ended up on the sick, this year I have been working 5 mornings (same number of hours) but again I have succumbed to fatigue. I am seriously considering applying for ill health retirement. Have you any advice you could give me? Are you still able to work but out of teaching (tier 1) or are you unable to work at all (tier 2)? Any information would be gratefully appreciated.
Thanks
Pauline