Section Six - Exit Payments

6. 1. In the event of redundancy, the Service applies statutory redundancy payments under the provisions of its Redundancy Procedure. This applies to both compulsory and voluntary redundancy situations.
   2. In addition, members who are members, or who are eligible to be members of the Local Government Pension Scheme, may be awarded an additional compensation payment under the provisions of the Discretionary Compensation Payments Scheme. This payment is based upon age and length of service. A Discretionary Compensation Payments Board assesses each application to determine whether there are any exceptional personal circumstances to enhance the compensation element of the award. This applies to both compulsory and voluntary redundancy situations. A cap of 66 weeks’ pay is applied in normal circumstances. This can be increased to up to 104 weeks in exceptional circumstances.
   3. All recommendations for enhanced payments are subject to agreement by the Human Resources Committee. There were no compensation awards agreed as part of redundancy arrangements in 2023-24.
   4. In exceptional cases, the Chief Fire Officer is authorised to agree a compensation payment as part of a compromise agreement when the employment of an employee is terminated by the Service, or in settlement of a claim. Such agreements are subject to confidentiality clauses. There was three such settlements in 2023-24.

Early Payment of Pension Benefits

6. 5. Under the provisions of the Local Government Pension Scheme, employees aged over 55 who are made redundant or who are retired from Service on the grounds of efficiency, are awarded early payment of pension benefits.
   6. In this case, a charge is made against the Fire Authority by the pensions fund, this is referred to as actuarial strain.
   7. There was one early payment made in 2023-24 linked to grounds of efficiency.