Blog
A deep-dive into a variety of pension topics to help you understand and learn more about your pension and the Scheme.
10/8/2026
Editorial
<div></div><div><span style="background-color: initial; font-size: inherit; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto; white-space: inherit">Your 40s can be a good time to review your pension savings. You may have more financial commitments than before, but you may also have more earning power and a clearer idea of what you want later life to look like.</span></div><div><br></div><div>If that’s the case for you, now may be the time to up your saving game and to prioritise your pension over all other things your money could be going towards.</div><div><br></div><div>Here are a few thoughts around pension saving in your 40s that could help you stay focused on your journey and make the most out of perhaps the most financially rewarding time of your career.</div><div> </div><h4>Prioritising saving for later life</h4><div>Recent research by Standard Life*, which sampled UK adults aged 18 to 80, highlights a clear gap between concern and action. While 53% of UK adults worry they aren’t saving enough for retirement, only 15% say it’s a top financial priority. At the same time, around one in three people haven’t worked out how much they’ll need. Without a clear plan, it can be difficult to turn expectations into reality. Taking a few minutes now to check your pension and what you’re on track to receive can help you feel more confident about your future.</div><div><br></div><div>Now you’ve got a few financial milestones behind you and have a bit more freedom to fund your own wants and needs, why not think about your future self and make the most of the saving opportunities you have? </div><div><br></div><div>You can borrow for many things, but not for retirement. If you can afford to invest more in your pension, doing so now could help you build more financial security for later life.</div><div> </div><div>With the Railways Pension Scheme, you can save extra towards your pension if you want to. You could do this by paying in Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs). AVCs are a great way to save tax-free either by giving your pension a one-off boost or making regular additional payments towards it.</div><div><br></div><div>Read more <a href="https://www.railwayspensions.co.uk/pension-essentials/saving-more" data-sf-ec-immutable="">about AVCs</a>.</div><div> </div><h4>Compounding is still a key factor</h4><div><span style="background-color: initial; font-size: inherit; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto; white-space: inherit">Compounding is when investment growth can generate further growth over time, not just on the amount you initially paid in. It can make a real difference when saving for later life because the longer your money is invested, the more time it has to grow.</span></div><div><br></div><div>If you’ve started saving for later life in your 20s, you may have built up some sizeable pension savings by now. Thanks to compounding, those savings may continue to benefit from further growth, not only from the money you keep paying in but from the compounding effect on that money too.</div><div><br></div><div><a href="/knowledge-hub/news-and-views/blogs/rps-blog/2026/10/19/pension-planning-your-20s---making-the-most-of-a-pension-plan-when-you're-young">Read more about compounding in our previous blogs in the pension planning series.</a></div><div> </div><h4>Have you accumulated a few different pension pots over the years?</h4><div>You may have been saving for retirement for a couple of decades now, and it’s possible you’ve built up more than one pension pot along the way. Your 40s can be a good point in your savings journey to take stock of what you have.</div><div><br></div><div>If you think you've lost track of a pension, you may want to turn to the <a href="https://www.pensiontracingservice.com/" target="_blank" data-sf-ec-immutable="">Pension Tracing Service</a> for help. It's a free, impartial service to help find your lost pensions and then offer guidance on what to do with them.</div><div><br></div><div>You could start a pension tracker to see at a glance how your different pots are performing. If you’re unsure what to do next, you could seek independent financial advice. Go to <a href="https://www.unbiased.co.uk/" target="_blank" data-sf-ec-immutable="">unbiased.co.uk</a> to find an independent adviser from a trusted source. </div><div><br></div><div>If you’ve previously worked for another employer within the rail industry and were a member of that Section of the RPS, you may be able to transfer those benefits into your new employer’s Section of the RPS.</div><div><br></div><div>However, if you’ve built up pension benefits in another pension scheme, you may not be able to transfer these into the RPS. This will depend on your employer’s policy, so you may need to discuss it with them.</div><div><br></div><div>You can find more information on transferring in your Member Guide, which is available in ‘My Library’ when you log into your <a href="https://www.railwayspensions.co.uk/my-rps" data-sf-ec-immutable="">myRPS account</a>.</div><div><br></div><div>If you haven’t really given retirement a thought yet, there’s still time to start saving and make a big difference to your financial future.</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><em>*<a href="https://www.standardlifeplc.com/centre-for-the-future-of-retirement/research-reports/article-page/retirement-voice-2025" target="_blank" data-sf-ec-immutable="">Retirement Voice 2025</a>, Exploring how retirement attitudes and experiences are changing by Standard Life. </em></div><div><br></div>
<div></div><div><span style="background-color: initial; font-size: inherit; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto; white-space: inherit">Your 40s can be a good time to review your pension savings. You may have more financial commitments than before, but you may also have more earning power and a clearer idea of what you want later life to look like.</span></div><div><br></div><div>If that’s the case for you, now may be the time to up your saving game and to prioritise your pension over all other things your money could be going towards.</div><div><br></div><div>Here are a few thoughts around pension saving in your 40s that could help you stay focused on your journey and make the most out of perhaps the most financially rewarding time of your career.</div><div> </div><h4>Prioritising saving for later life</h4><div>Recent research by Standard Life*, which sampled UK adults aged 18 to 80, highlights a clear gap between concern and action. While 53% of UK adults worry they aren’t saving enough for retirement, only 15% say it’s a top financial priority. At the same time, around one in three people haven’t worked out how much they’ll need. Without a clear plan, it can be difficult to turn expectations into reality. Taking a few minutes now to check your pension and what you’re on track to receive can help you feel more confident about your future.</div><div><br></div><div>Now you’ve got a few financial milestones behind you and have a bit more freedom to fund your own wants and needs, why not think about your future self and make the most of the saving opportunities you have? </div><div><br></div><div>You can borrow for many things, but not for retirement. If you can afford to invest more in your pension, doing so now could help you build more financial security for later life.</div><div> </div><div>With the Railways Pension Scheme, you can save extra towards your pension if you want to. You could do this by paying in Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs). AVCs are a great way to save tax-free either by giving your pension a one-off boost or making regular additional payments towards it.</div><div><br></div><div>Read more <a href="https://www.railwayspensions.co.uk/pension-essentials/saving-more" data-sf-ec-immutable="">about AVCs</a>.</div><div> </div><h4>Compounding is still a key factor</h4><div><span style="background-color: initial; font-size: inherit; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto; white-space: inherit">Compounding is when investment growth can generate further growth over time, not just on the amount you initially paid in. It can make a real difference when saving for later life because the longer your money is invested, the more time it has to grow.</span></div><div><br></div><div>If you’ve started saving for later life in your 20s, you may have built up some sizeable pension savings by now. Thanks to compounding, those savings may continue to benefit from further growth, not only from the money you keep paying in but from the compounding effect on that money too.</div><div><br></div><div><a href="/knowledge-hub/news-and-views/blogs/rps-blog/2026/10/19/pension-planning-your-20s---making-the-most-of-a-pension-plan-when-you're-young">Read more about compounding in our previous blogs in the pension planning series.</a></div><div> </div><h4>Have you accumulated a few different pension pots over the years?</h4><div>You may have been saving for retirement for a couple of decades now, and it’s possible you’ve built up more than one pension pot along the way. Your 40s can be a good point in your savings journey to take stock of what you have.</div><div><br></div><div>If you think you've lost track of a pension, you may want to turn to the <a href="https://www.pensiontracingservice.com/" target="_blank" data-sf-ec-immutable="">Pension Tracing Service</a> for help. It's a free, impartial service to help find your lost pensions and then offer guidance on what to do with them.</div><div><br></div><div>You could start a pension tracker to see at a glance how your different pots are performing. If you’re unsure what to do next, you could seek independent financial advice. Go to <a href="https://www.unbiased.co.uk/" target="_blank" data-sf-ec-immutable="">unbiased.co.uk</a> to find an independent adviser from a trusted source. </div><div><br></div><div>If you’ve previously worked for another employer within the rail industry and were a member of that Section of the RPS, you may be able to transfer those benefits into your new employer’s Section of the RPS.</div><div><br></div><div>However, if you’ve built up pension benefits in another pension scheme, you may not be able to transfer these into the RPS. This will depend on your employer’s policy, so you may need to discuss it with them.</div><div><br></div><div>You can find more information on transferring in your Member Guide, which is available in ‘My Library’ when you log into your <a href="https://www.railwayspensions.co.uk/my-rps" data-sf-ec-immutable="">myRPS account</a>.</div><div><br></div><div>If you haven’t really given retirement a thought yet, there’s still time to start saving and make a big difference to your financial future.</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><em>*<a href="https://www.standardlifeplc.com/centre-for-the-future-of-retirement/research-reports/article-page/retirement-voice-2025" target="_blank" data-sf-ec-immutable="">Retirement Voice 2025</a>, Exploring how retirement attitudes and experiences are changing by Standard Life. </em></div><div><br></div>
Blog
Pension planning in your 40s
Staying focused on your pensions journey in your 40s and making the most out of perhaps the most financially rewarding time of your career.
Your 40s can be a good time to review your pension savings. You may have more financial commitments than before, but you may also have more earning power and a clearer idea of what you want later life to look like.
If that’s the case for you, now may be the time to up your saving game and to prioritise your pension over all other things your money could be going towards.
Here are a few thoughts around pension saving in your 40s that could help you stay focused on your journey and make the most out of perhaps the most financially rewarding time of your career.
Prioritising saving for later life
Recent research by Standard Life*, which sampled UK adults aged 18 to 80, highlights a clear gap between concern and action. While 53% of UK adults worry they aren’t saving enough for retirement, only 15% say it’s a top financial priority. At the same time, around one in three people haven’t worked out how much they’ll need. Without a clear plan, it can be difficult to turn expectations into reality. Taking a few minutes now to check your pension and what you’re on track to receive can help you feel more confident about your future.
Now you’ve got a few financial milestones behind you and have a bit more freedom to fund your own wants and needs, why not think about your future self and make the most of the saving opportunities you have?
You can borrow for many things, but not for retirement. If you can afford to invest more in your pension, doing so now could help you build more financial security for later life.
With the Railways Pension Scheme, you can save extra towards your pension if you want to. You could do this by paying in Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs). AVCs are a great way to save tax-free either by giving your pension a one-off boost or making regular additional payments towards it.
Read more about AVCs.
Compounding is still a key factor
Compounding is when investment growth can generate further growth over time, not just on the amount you initially paid in. It can make a real difference when saving for later life because the longer your money is invested, the more time it has to grow.
If you’ve started saving for later life in your 20s, you may have built up some sizeable pension savings by now. Thanks to compounding, those savings may continue to benefit from further growth, not only from the money you keep paying in but from the compounding effect on that money too.
Have you accumulated a few different pension pots over the years?
You may have been saving for retirement for a couple of decades now, and it’s possible you’ve built up more than one pension pot along the way. Your 40s can be a good point in your savings journey to take stock of what you have.
If you think you've lost track of a pension, you may want to turn to the Pension Tracing Service for help. It's a free, impartial service to help find your lost pensions and then offer guidance on what to do with them.
You could start a pension tracker to see at a glance how your different pots are performing. If you’re unsure what to do next, you could seek independent financial advice. Go to unbiased.co.uk to find an independent adviser from a trusted source.
If you’ve previously worked for another employer within the rail industry and were a member of that Section of the RPS, you may be able to transfer those benefits into your new employer’s Section of the RPS.
However, if you’ve built up pension benefits in another pension scheme, you may not be able to transfer these into the RPS. This will depend on your employer’s policy, so you may need to discuss it with them.
You can find more information on transferring in your Member Guide, which is available in ‘My Library’ when you log into your myRPS account.
If you haven’t really given retirement a thought yet, there’s still time to start saving and make a big difference to your financial future.
*Retirement Voice 2025, Exploring how retirement attitudes and experiences are changing by Standard Life.
