There are three types of pension schemes, defined benefit, defined contribution and State Pensions.
The rules of the scheme decide how much pension you will get in a defined benefit scheme. The most common type of defined benefit scheme is a final salary scheme. In a final salary scheme your pension is worked out using the length of time you have been in the scheme and how much you are earning when you leave.
The Harmsworth Pension Scheme is a defined benefit scheme. You can check your employment contract or company intranet to see if you are eligible to join it.
In a defined contribution plan, the size of your pension will be affected by how much money is put into your pension fund, how much the pension fund has grown, and what annuity rate is available when you retire. These types of plans are also called money purchase plans.
PensionSaver is a defined contribution plan. You can check your contract of employment or company intranet to see which plan you are eligible to join. Personal pensions and stakeholder plans are also defined contribution plans, as are most types of AVC arrangements.
State Pensions are paid to us by the government when we reach a certain age. There are two parts to the State Pension - the basic State Pension and the additional State Pension. The amount of pension you will receive depends on the amount of "qualifying years" you have earned by paying National Insurance contributions. You can get a forecast of your State Pension to get an idea of how much you'll receive.