Leave of absence

If you are absent from work due to sickness the amount of pension you build up won't be affected. When you are in receipt of full sick pay your pension builds up as normal using the pensionable pay you receive. 

If you have a period of reduced contractual pay or no pay due to sickness or injury then your pension is worked out using an average of your usual pensionable pay (before the reduction in pay took place). This cover means that when the pay you receive is less than your normal pay (because of sickness or injury), the pension you build up won't be affected. You will only pay your contributions on any pay that you receive.

If you are a new parent and have a period of relevant child related leave the amount of pension you build up won't be affected.

Relevant child-related leave in the LGPS means:

• ordinary maternity or adoption leave – normally the first 26 weeks
• paid additional maternity or adoption leave – normally week 27 to week 39
• unpaid additional maternity or adoption leave – if the unpaid period started 1 April 2026 or later
• paid shared parental leave
• unpaid shared parental leave – if the unpaid period started 1 April 2026 or later
• paternity leave
• bereaved partner’s paternity leave
• paid parental bereavement leave, and
• paid neonatal care leave.

During a period of relevant child-related leave, your pension is usually worked out using your Assumed Pensionable Pay. Assumed Pensionable Pay is a notional figure that is used to make sure your pension is not affected by the pay reduction. You would continue to build up a pension in the LGPS as if you were working normally and receiving normal pay. 

Short authorised breaks (less than 15 days duration)

From 1 April 2026, if your employer allows you to take unpaid leave that lasts less than 15 days, your pension will continue to build up in this period. 

You and your employer will both pay the pension contributions that would have been paid if you were at work receiving your normal pay. 

This change does not apply if you were unpaid because you were on strike. A strike break does not automatically count for pension purposes regardless of its length. 

Unpaid leave of 15 days or more

If your employer allows you to take unpaid leave that lasts 15 days or more, the break will not automatically count for pension purposes. 

You can elect to buy some or all of the pension you lost during the unpaid period by paying extra contributions. The contributions can be paid by lump sum or regular deductions from your pay. Your employer will inform you of the cost and your payment options. 

An arrangement called a Qualifying Additional Pension Arrangement (QAPA) applies to unpaid leave that starts from 1 April 2026 or later. 

See the buy lost pension calculator :: LGPS for information about the rules that applied to authorised unpaid breaks that started before 1 April 2026. 

Qualifying Additional Pension Arrangement (QAPA)

If your employer allows you to take unpaid leave you can pay extra pension contributions to cover that period for pension purposes.

An arrangement to buy the pension ‘lost’ in an unpaid break will be a Qualifying Additional Pension Arrangement (QAPA) if:

• the unpaid leave started 1 April 2026 or later
• the unpaid leave lasted for 15 days or more
• you elect to pay the extra contributions within a year of returning to work (or a longer period allowed by your employer), and
• you are in the the same employment you were in when you took the unpaid leave when you elect to pay the extra contributions

The cost is based on the pension contributions that would have been paid if you had been at work receiving your normal pay. 

If the unpaid break lasted less than three years, the cost is split between you and your employer. You pay the member contributions at your normal contribution rate and your employer pays the employer contributions.

If the break lasted more than three years, your employer only has to contribute for the first three years of the break. You could still buy the pension you lost in the unpaid period beyond the first three years, but you would have to pay the total cost (member and employer contributions) yourself.

You can pay the extra contributions by lump sum or regular deductions from your pay over a year or a number of years. The contributions must stop before your Normal Pension Age (NPA). If you are over NPA or less than a year below NPA when you return from unpaid leave, you can only pay by lump sum.

The extra pension you buy through a QAPA is known as qualifying additional pension.

If you are away from work without the permission of your employer due to being involved in a strike, your LGPS pension entitlement will reflect a break for any days that you are absent. If you wish to pay contributions for any strike period you will need to enter into a 'Full Cost' APC contract i.e. your employer will not pay any part of the APCs.

A series of Frequently Asked Questions are available on the LGPS member website.

Absence due to a period of jury service is treated in exactly the same way as periods of agreed absence. Therefore, please refer to the section headed 'Agreed absence'.

If you enter into a period of reserve forces leave you will continue to pay a contribution to the Fund in order to continue to build up a pension as if you had been at work throughout.

In order to do this your contribution will be based on your Assumed Pensionable Pay. The Ministry of Defence would then be required to deduct these contributions from you and pay them over to the Berkshire Pension Fund in order to maintain your continued pension entitlement.