A pension provides income to live on in retirement. There are state benefit schemes offering limited financial support for your old age, and a number of other private schemes enabling you to build a larger fund for the future. To avoid a paltry income in retirement it is in everybody's best interest to save more for it.

State benefits are included in the State 2nd Pension, replacing the basic state pension (SERPS) from 2002. There are a number of other types of pension scheme including occupational pensions, personal pensions and stakeholder pensions.

Where the pension is an occupational scheme. it may be possible to make additional contributions in the form of AVCs, FSAVCs or stakeholder pension contributions.

Self invested personal pension schemes (SIPPs) allow investments from a wide range of sources including Commercial Property, shares and unit trusts.