Getting Ready for Targeted Support and Guided Retirement

Although primarily aimed at contract-based pension arrangements, trustees should not assume this is out of scope. In practice, schemes could look to partner with an FCA‑regulated firm to provide support akin to Targeted Support to their members for specific scenarios, rather than directly by trustees, making provider readiness a key consideration regardless of scheme type.

Guided Retirement, introduced through the Pension Schemes Bill 2024-25, places a new duty on trustees of trust-based schemes to design, review and allocate a default decumulation solution to members with money purchase benefits. Although the detailed regulatory framework is still to come, Guided Retirement is already being delivered in practice. No longer just a future policy concept; expectations are already being shaped by what schemes are offering now, and default retirement pathways are fast becoming part of the mainstream DC experience.

Targeted Support and Guided Retirement mark a clear shift in how retirement support is delivered. Getting ready means understanding what providers are building, how these developments will affect employee choices at retirement, and whether the support on offer genuinely helps people move from saving into retirement with greater confidence and clarity.

We know that generic solutions that resort to basic signposting aren’t doing enough. According to DWP research of people aged 40-75, only 30% have heard of Pension Wise and just 9% know about Money Helper, so trustees and employers could already do more to signpost these services early and often, not just at the point of retirement. Combining these with new initiatives into a cohesive member communication strategy will be central to future governance frameworks.