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BSM launches group personal pension plan for staff group-wide

The British School of Motoring (BSM) has launched a new group personal pension for its staff across 94 UK locations.

The company, which each year trains 130,000 people to drive, rolled out the scheme earlier this month. Under the new plan, staff will contribute a minimum 3% of salary.

The company will match employee contributions up to 6% of salary, and a salary- sacrifice arrangement allows the employee to save tax and National Insurance Contributions and the employer to save National Insurance Contributions.

The unified pension replaces a number of smaller schemes across the company.

In October BSM will launch a communication exercise for its new scheme conducted by employee benefits communications firm Secondsight. The communications will take the form of a group presentation and individual meetings for staff at the Bristol head office. Telephone meetings will be held for the remainder of staff across the country.

Helen Robinson, BSM's HR manager, said: "We consider this to be a fantastic opportunity for our colleagues to increase their awareness of pensions and to better understand the importance of financial planning, particularly during a period of economic downturn. We are making a financial commitment to our staff by improving the pension offering but also want to ensure they have a really positive experience and provide them with a great foundation for their financial future."