Workplace pension investment options

Introducing Active Plus and Passive Plus

These bring together a mix of investments in one solution, and can be managed for you right up to retirement – so they're a quick and simple way of investing.

All you have to do is decide how much risk you’re comfortable taking and select the appropriate one, from risk levels 1 (lower risk) to 5 (higher risk). If your retirement goals and circumstances change, you can always move between options to take more or less risk to suit your needs or move to a different investment option.

The investment specialists who manage the funds will decide what they should be invested in and when, and make sure they don’t take any more or less risk than you said you were comfortable with. They’ll also aim to deliver the best possible returns for the level of risk you’ve chosen.

You can choose individual Active Plus or Passive Plus funds. Or, if you want an option that gets your pension savings ready for how you plan to take them, you might want to consider a lifestyle profile.

What are lifestyle profiles?

Lifestyle profiles aim to grow the value of your pension savings, as well as getting them ready for how you plan to take them - whether that’s setting up a guaranteed income for life (an annuity), taking a lump sum, taking a flexible income (drawdown), or a combination of these. They do this by moving your money into a different mix of investments as you get closer to your retirement date.

More about lifestyle profiles

We recommend that you regularly review your investments to make sure they remain appropriate for you and that they’re on track to meet your goals.

1. Decide how much risk you’re comfortable taking

You choose the risk level most appropriate for you:

If you’re not sure which risk level is right for you, our risk questionnaire might help. And remember, you can move to another risk level or investment option at any time if your goals or attitude to risk change.

2. If you choose a lifestyle profile, decide how you're going to take your money in the future

• Universal lifestyle profiles - if you want flexibility in how you'll take your money in the future
• Annuity lifestyle profiles - if you want to take your full tax-free lump sum and set up an annuity with the rest
• Lump Sum lifestyle profiles - if you want to take all your money as a lump sum or a series of lump sums
• Active Retirement lifestyle profiles - if you want to take a flexible income through the Standard Life Active Retirement investment option

The investment specialists managing the funds will then manage the option you've chosen.

Differences between Active Plus and Passive Plus

For the Active Plus options, they do this through a range of actively managed Standard Life funds. The Active Plus range also invests a portion in passive funds. For the Passive Plus options, they do this through a range of passive (also known as index-tracking) funds from Vanguard Asset Management.

How ESG is integrated

Most of the funds used in the Active Plus range are actively managed by Aberdeen Standard Investments. They integrate environmental, social and governance (ESG) into their investment management processes. They have the information and flexibility to take account of ESG analysis and factors when they select investments for their portfolios.

The Passive Plus and Passive Core ranges invest predominantly in passive funds. This means the investment managers don't actively integrate ESG into their investment processes. However, as a steward of an investment they can influence positive change using engagement and voting rights.

More about responsible investment