6 ways to make the most of your pension now

Whether you’re nearing retirement age or just starting to think about your future finances, there are steps you can take to grow your pension savings.

Pension planning might not be at the top of your to-do list. But spending just a little time thinking about your retirement this Pension Engagement Season could help you feel more confident. 

In this article, we’ve compiled a list of some of the steps you can take that could help strengthen your pension savings. 

1. Check whether your employer will contribute more

You may already be familiar with auto-enrolment legislation. It requires most employers to opt workers into a pension scheme when they join the company. 

Usually, a minimum 8% of an employee’s qualifying earnings need to be set aside into a pension pot. Employees typically contribute a minimum 5% of that amount, with the employer contributing the remaining 3%.

What you might not know is that some employers are willing to contribute more than the minimum 3%, often as part of an employee benefits package. Some may even match your contributions up to a certain percentage if you choose to increase them. 

If you haven’t already, now’s a good time to investigate the perks on offer at your company. If your employer is willing to increase or match contributions, that means more money for your pension pot.

2. Make the most of tax benefits

When you pay into a pension, you can receive tax relief from the government.

The amount of tax relief you're entitled to depends on the rate of income tax you pay, and the way you receive it depends on your pension arrangement.

With a relief at source arrangement, your pension contributions come from your take-home pay. Your pension provider claims 20% in tax relief for you. Plus, if you pay more than the basic rate of income tax, you may be able to claim additional tax relief.

With a net pay arrangement, your pension contribution is taken from your salary before income tax is deducted, reducing the amount of income tax you pay.

And, if you're part of a salary sacrifice scheme, part of your salary is exchanged for a pension contribution, meaning you pay less in tax and National Insurance.

Either way, you get more for your money, either now or when you retire. 

3. Don’t forget the power of small changes

Increasing your contributions even just a little could impact the final value of your pension.

That’s because of compound growth. This is the ‘growth on top of growth’ that pension investments can deliver. If an investment generates a return, the higher amount can be invested again, with the potential to further increase in value. 

Over time, pension investments and compound growth have the potential to significantly increase the value of your pension. As much as 65% of your pension’s final value could come from pension growth alone. 

If you can afford it, you could consider increasing your regular pension contributions, or occasionally topping up your pension, as this could add to the compounding effect. That’s because the higher the initial investment, the higher the potential return. 

Don’t forget, investments can fall in value too. The value of your pension can go down as well as up and could be worth less than was paid in.

4. Give your pension time to grow

The more time money stays invested in a pension pot, the longer it has to potentially increase in value, and to recover if investment markets decline. 

Starting to save from an early age and regularly reviewing the amount you can afford to set aside can make a big difference in the long term.

That doesn’t mean that those nearing retirement should avoid paying into their pension – there’s still opportunity for pension growth at every life stage.

5. Conduct a quick review

It doesn’t take long to check in on your pension, and doing so can help boost your confidence. People who report having done just “a little planning” for retirement say they feel more positive about the future than those who have done “no planning.”

You could check your regular contributions and consider whether you could afford to increase the amount you're saving into your pension pot. If you receive a bonus, you could consider putting some or all of it towards your pension, which, like salary sacrifice, could reduce your tax and NI payments.

You could also take a look at your projected retirement age, which is when you’ll be able to access your private pension. Checking your retirement age is important, as it allows you to plan based on facts rather than assumptions.

Plus, if you’re a Standard Life customer, you can access several retirement income planning tools online or through our app. These can help you carry out a financial health check, understand what you’re currently on track for in retirement, and how the impact that even small changes can have on your pension. Just log into your Standard Life account online or through the app, or register for online servicing to get started.

6. Track down your old pensions

Think all your pensions pay out automatically when you retire? Unfortunately, that’s not the case. You’ll need to notify all your pension providers when you want to start accessing your pension. If you’ve had multiple employers throughout your career, then you’re likely to have several pension pots too. 

If you’ve lost track of your old pensions, finding them can take a little time, but you only need to do it once. Jot down a list of all your past employers and roughly when you worked for them. Then use the government’s Pension Tracing Service to find out which pension provider they used, before contacting the provider to find out if they have a pension pot under your name.

Once you’ve located all your pension pots, you could consider consolidating them, so that you only have to manage one. This can make it easier to understand your forecasted position in retirement. 

Consolidating isn’t right for everyone. It’s important to check the terms and conditions of each of your pensions to avoid missing out on valuable benefits, or being faced with expensive fees. 

Read more: Is it time to consolidate your pension?
 

Four quick pension checks to make this Pension Engagement Season

1.    Check how much is in your pension 
2.    Review how much you and your employer pay in.
3.    Check whether you have any lost pensions.
4.    Log in or use the Standard Life app to explore more ways to improve your future retirement income.

Visit Pension Engagement Season.

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The information here is based on our understanding in September 2026 and shouldn’t be taken as financial advice.

A pension plan is an investment. Its value can go down as well as up and could be worth less than was paid in.

Your own personal circumstances, including where you live in the UK, will have an impact on the tax you pay. Laws and tax rules may change in the future.

Standard Life accepts no responsibility for information on external websites. These are provided for general information.