Huge rise in staff over state pension age at Shropshire hospital amid cost of living crisis

New research shows that Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic and District Hospital NHS Trust in Oswestry has seen the second highest increase in the country of people working past the state pension age.

The 163.64 per cent increase came second only to Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, which saw a rise of 170.83 per cent between 2018 and 2022.

The research, compiled by financial planning experts, Money Minder, sent Freedom of Information requests to more than 50 NHS Foundation Trusts across England to reveal how many workers aged 66 and over were staying within permanent contracts within the NHS.

With surging inflation, energy bills and food prices, people could be choosing to work past retirement age to cope with rising these new costs and help them maintain a good quality of life.

In 2018, there were 5,900 seniors working past retirement age in the UK. In 2022, that number currently stands at 6,849.

Commenting on the research, Ray Black, managing director and chartered financial planner at Money Minder said: “The rising cost of living has meant that some seniors have decided to adapt their way of living to afford the increase in bills, or potentially, they are still working in order to fund a more rewarding retirement lifestyle.

“That means for many, even though they have reached state pension age, retirement may not be an option, or they have retired, drawn their NHS pension and then decided to return to work.

“While we are facing these challenging times of high inflation and low interest rates, for some seniors that have been working and saving for retirement for decades, having to stay at work or re-entering the workforce will be a bitter blow.

“For others, it will be a positive decision they have made because it allows them to enjoy more time with their family while also enjoying a similar net monthly income to when they were working full-time.

“Having delivered retirement and investment planning workshops to NHS staff for around 20 years, we have seen the ‘retire and return’ option become more and more popular.

“For some, they will have decided to return to work after drawing their NHS pension scheme because they want, or need, the extra income it provides them with.

“For others, it will be because they are not quite ready to retire and feel they have more to offer but would prefer to do so on a part-time contract, rather than full-time.

“And for others, the extra two or three days a week helps pay for the longer holidays and trips abroad that they want to enjoy. In my experience, semi-retirement as opposed to full retirement has become much more appealing in the 60 to 66 plus age group over the last few years in all industries, not just for NHS workers."

Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic and District Hospital NHS Trust has been contacted for comment.