Pensions Salary Survey

Sammons Pensions Recruitment tracks remuneration trends nationwide across in-house, third party, consultancy, and niche specialists, publishing a Salary Survey every year since 2002. 

2025 has been another exceptionally challenging year. The UK business community has been navigating relentless policy shocks, global trade headwinds, and rapid technology adoption. Business confidence has been materially affected by recent UK Budgets driven largely by the rise in employer National Insurance Contributions and mounting cost pressures. Tariffs and trade wars have weighted on exporters. Amid policy and trade challenges, technology adoption is a key strategic focus, for firms seeking productivity gains, improved decision-making and competitiveness. New job postings within the Pensions industry remained consistent reflecting the shortages of talent, the need to train newcomers to the industry and upskill existing staff. There has been a shift towards more office-based working, typically hybrid, with remote working options also available. In a continuing candidate-driven market career opportunity, benefits packages, flexibility and a nimble recruitment process are essential to attract and retain talented individuals.

As an industry, Pensions attracts individuals who will have a structured career path across their working life, and equally individuals who may take a more varied path including those who move into this field mid or later career. There are a number of career paths open to you, depending in part of the structure of the training and development scheme you undertake, for example if you are qualifying as a lawyer, an actuary or an accountant (to name but a few) and also the areas of the industry that are of interest to you, for example working in consultancy or for an in-house Pensions department, or if you are interested in specialising in certain areas such as administration, project management, IT, communications, investments or accounts (just a few examples of the numerous areas this industry offers opportunities in). 

For entry level candidates, the most typical route into Pensions would be Trainee Pensions Administrator positions. Salaries for this level vary, but there is no doubt that with the right support and driven attitude, and commitment to attaining professional qualifications, with salary increases often following each exam passed, there is no limit to how quickly this can increase. These salaries do align very similarly from In-house to Consultancy/Third Party, with little difference at this level. 

Congratulations, you have been rewarded for your hard work and now have been promoted! Salaries across Pensions/Senior Pensions Administrators have seen the largest overhaul in the last couple of years, partly inflation driven, but also by employers recognising the lack of available talent in the market at this level, both in-house and in third-party/consultancy. 

Longer-term career paths could include management through to Operations Director or moving into more specialist roles such as project management, client relationship management, consulting, or in-house scheme management to name but a few.