Swinton restructures staff pension scheme

Swinton has offered its 4,700 staff a new pension scheme.

The high street broker said that despite the current economic climate and in the wake of many UK firms closing staff pension plans, it is bucking the trend and improving its pensions offer for all its employees across the UK.

The new bespoke group stakeholder plan, provided by Friends Provident, offers Swinton a new online interactive platform to educate and empower employees. Management tools including a pension forecast calculator allow employees to get a real projection of their potential retirement benefits and assist them in taking control of their retirement plans.

Donna Winrow, Swinton’s director of HR said: “At Swinton, we are constantly looking to improve the benefits we provide to our employees. Our new pension plan, which has been specifically designed for Swinton by Friends Provident , offers an interactive resource which we hope will raise awareness and encourage take-up.”

She added: “With over 580 high street branches across the UK and call centres in Manchester, Norwich and Halifax, this new online management system will enable us to communicate effectively with all of our employees on their pension plan wherever they are based in the UK.”

Russell Welsh head of UK corporate for Friends Provident added: “This scheme marks the beginning of a new working partnership for Friends Provident and Swinton. We are pleased to be able to support Swinton in its efforts to offer employees a one-stop shop catering for all their retirement and pension needs. It is encouraging to see an employer of Swinton’s stature embrace the full potential of flexible pension arrangements. We look forward to working with them and constantly improving our online proposition to support their efforts in this. ”