The National Health Service Pension Scheme Regulations 2008

2.H.5    Meaning of “previous pay”: general

(1) For the purposes of this Chapter an employed pensioner’s previous pay is the greater of—

(a) the employed pensioner’s reckonable pay for the purposes of the old service pension, and

(b) the annual rate of pay for the old employment at the time it ceased.

This is subject to paragraph (3) and regulation 2.H.6.

(2) In this regulation “annual rate of pay” means the sum of—

(a) the annual rate of so much of the employed pensioner’s pensionable pay immediately before the old service pension became payable as consisted of—

(i) salary,

(ii) wages, or

(iii) other regular payments,

of a fixed nature, and

(b) so much of any fees and other regular payments not of a fixed nature as—

(i) was payable to the employed pensioner during the period of 12 months ending with the day the old employment ceased, and

(ii) formed part of the employed pensioner’s pensionable pay.

(3) The amount to be taken as the employed pensioner’s previous pay must be adjusted in each scheme year for inflation.

This is subject to regulation 2.H.6.

(4) The reference in paragraph (3) to adjusting that amount in each scheme year for inflation is to increasing it by the same amount as that by which an annual pension equal to that amount would have been increased under the Pensions (Increase) Act 1971 at 6th April in that scheme year if—

(a) that pension was eligible to be so increased, and

(b) the beginning date for that pension were the same as the beginning date for the old service pension.

(5) In this regulation “the beginning date”, in relation to a pension, means the date on which it is treated as beginning for the purposes of the Pensions (Increase) Act 1971 (see section 8(2) of that Act).