Pillar Guide · Updated July 2026
Additional State Pension (SERPS/S2P): A Complete UK Guide for 2026/27
If you reached State Pension age before 6 April 2016, you may have built up an Additional State Pension — previously called SERPS and later the State Second Pension — on top of the Basic State Pension. This guide explains what it was, who still has entitlement to it, how it feeds into pension calculations, and how it can sometimes be inherited from a late spouse or civil partner.
What the Additional State Pension Was
The Additional State Pension was an earnings-related top-up to the flat-rate Basic State Pension, available to employees (though generally not the self-employed) under the pre-2016 'old' State Pension system, designed to give higher earners a State Pension linked more closely to their earnings history rather than a single flat amount for everyone.
From SERPS to the State Second Pension
The scheme began in 1978 as the State Earnings-Related Pension Scheme (SERPS), calculating additional pension based on a proportion of earnings between set thresholds across a working life. It was reformed and renamed the State Second Pension (S2P) from 2002, which changed the calculation to be more generous to lower and moderate earners, carers and some people with long-term disabilities than the original SERPS formula had been.
Who Still Has an Additional State Pension
Anyone who reached State Pension age before 6 April 2016 and was an employee (rather than only self-employed) during years when SERPS or S2P applied, and who was not contracted out for those years, will typically have built up some Additional State Pension, paid alongside their Basic State Pension as part of their total old-system State Pension.
The Effect of Contracting Out
Many employees were 'contracted out' of SERPS or S2P for some or all of their working life, usually because their employer's workplace pension scheme guaranteed to provide a broadly equivalent benefit instead, in exchange for a lower rate of National Insurance being paid by both employer and employee. Contracted-out years generally do not add to Additional State Pension, since the equivalent benefit was intended to come from the workplace scheme instead.
How It Was Folded Into the New State Pension
When the new State Pension was introduced from 6 April 2016, anyone with a mixed old-system and new-system National Insurance record had a 'starting amount' calculated as the higher of what they would have received under the old rules (Basic State Pension plus Additional State Pension, less any Contracted Out Pension Equivalent deduction) or what they would get under the new rules based on qualifying years alone, meaning any Additional State Pension already built up was protected within that starting amount rather than being lost.
Inheriting Additional State Pension
A surviving spouse or civil partner may be able to inherit some or all of their late partner's Additional State Pension, with the exact proportion depending on factors including when the partner reached (or would have reached) State Pension age and the date of the marriage or civil partnership, potentially increasing the survivor's own State Pension above what their personal National Insurance record alone would provide.
Checking Your Entitlement
People who reached State Pension age under the old system can see any Additional State Pension included as part of their State Pension breakdown from the Pension Service, while people under the new State Pension system will see any historic Additional State Pension reflected within their 'starting amount' calculation, which is generally explained on request if it affects their new State Pension figure.
Why No One Builds Up New Additional Pension Now
The Additional State Pension and contracting out were both abolished for future accrual from 6 April 2016 when the new State Pension began, meaning no one has built up any further Additional State Pension since that date; entitlement is entirely historic, reflecting only the years worked before the new system started.