Guidance For Scottish Teachers Employers on the 2025/26 I.A.S. 19 Employee Benefits – Disclosure Requirements Preparing your annual accounts disclosure
Preparing your annual accounts disclosure
The following suggested text has been produced to help you with disclosures in your annual report and accounts for multi-employer plans (as described in IAS19, paragraph 148). Your participation in the scheme (see point d) section (v) below) can be shown by calculating your proportion of the total employer contributions made to the scheme.
To help with your calculation, note that the total employer contributions received for the Scottish Teachers’ Pension Scheme in the year to 31 March 2025 were £897.6 million (see note 3 in the pension scheme accounts). Contributions collected in the year to 31 March 2026 will be published in October 2026.
Suggested text
“IAS 19 - Employee Benefits paragraph 148 - Multi-employer plans
(a) The (name of body) participates in the Scottish Teachers’ Superannuation Scheme. The scheme is an unfunded statutory public service pension scheme with benefits underwritten by the UK Government. The scheme is financed by payments from employers and from those current employees who are members of the scheme and paying contributions at progressively higher marginal rates based on pensionable pay, as specified in the regulations. The rate of employer contributions is set with reference to a funding valuation undertaken by the scheme actuary.
The valuation carried out as at 31 March 2020 confirmed that an increase in the employer contribution rate from 22.4% to 26.0% will be required from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2027. In addition, member pension contributions since 1 April 2024 have been paid within a range of 7.35% to 12.14% and have been anticipated to deliver a yield of 9.6%.
(b) (name of body) has no liability for other employers’ obligations to the multi-employer scheme.
(c) As the scheme is unfunded there can be no deficit or surplus to distribute on the wind-up of the scheme or withdrawal from the scheme
(d)
(i) The scheme is an unfunded multi-employer defined benefit scheme.
(ii) It is accepted that the scheme can be treated for accounting purposes as a defined contribution scheme in circumstances where the (name of body) is unable to identify its share of the underlying assets and liabilities of the scheme.
(iii) The employer contribution rate for the period from 1 April 2025 is 26% of pensionable pay. The employee rate applied is variable and is anticipated to provide a yield of 9.6% of pensionable pay.
(iv) While a valuation was carried out as at 31 March 2016, work on the cost control element of that valuation was suspended by the UK Government following the Court of Appeal judgments in the McCloud (Judiciary scheme) and Sargeant (Firefighters’ scheme) cases, which found that the transitional protections introduced as part of the 2015 reforms unlawfully discriminated on the grounds of age. Following consultation and the introduction of statutory measures to remedy the discrimination, the UK Government confirmed that the cost control element of the 2016 valuations could be completed. In parallel, the Government Actuary was asked to review whether, and to what extent, the employer cost cap mechanism continues to meet its original policy objectives. The findings of that review were taken into account in the completion of the 2020 actuarial valuations, which were substantially delayed as a result of the McCloud remedy and wider economic changes. Employer contribution rates were implemented from 1 April 2024 following the completion of the 2020 valuations and will remain in force pending the outcome of the current 2024 valuation cycle, which is now underway.
(v) (name of body)’s level of participation in the scheme is x% based on the proportion of employer contributions paid in 2024-25.