Background

On 1 December 2025, Capita took over administration of the Civil Service Pension Scheme from MyCSP. The contract was awarded by the Cabinet Office and is worth £239 million over seven years.  

Despite a two-year transition period to prepare for taking over the scheme, Capita has struggled to administer the scheme effectively following the transfer. Key service levels have been repeatedly missed, leaving many members struggling to access the information they need to plan for their retirement.  

Other members who were due to have retired have been forced to amend their plans as they did not receive the payments they were entitled to on time. The Cabinet Office has had to introduce transitional support loans to these members, with £22.1 million paid out to more than 3,900 members by August 2026. Parliament has repeatedly scrutinised the performance of both Capita and the Cabinet Office through a series of evidence sessions to try and understand why the service is underperforming. 

This investigation will build on our June 2025 report on the administration of the Civil Service Pension Scheme, which focused on MyCSP’s customer service and looked at the initial planning that had taken place as part of the transition process to Capita.  

Scope

The audit will examine how the Cabinet Office has managed the transition of administrator for the Civil Service Pension Scheme and how the service has been administered by Capita since December 2025.  

It will consider:

  • The status of the scheme and transition arrangements at go-live in December 2025
  • how Capita has performed in administering the scheme, and the impact on member experience, since go-live
  • how the Cabinet office has exercised its responsibilities for oversight of the scheme both prior and following the transition to Capita

The scope of this investigation will not include looking at individual pension calculations. Scheme members who have any questions or concerns about their own pension should contact their pension administrator.

NAO team

Director: Lee Summerfield  
Audit Manager: Tom Tyson

Topics