The long-awaited pensions dashboards are making steady progress towards launch, with more than 50 million scheme memberships already linked to the central digital architecture.
Speaking at the Corporate Adviser Summit this week, Chris Curry, principal at the Pensions Dashboard Programme, confirmed that the initiative remains on track and outlined the milestones achieved so far.
Curry explained: “Back at the start of April this year, schemes started connecting to the central digital architecture of the pensions dashboards programme. That was a major milestone. We’ve been testing with our providers for nearly 12 months to get that connection working.”
The scale of rollout
The numbers are set to rise significantly. Curry noted that by October 2026, around 80 million scheme memberships from public and private sector schemes will be connected, along with state pension data covering tens of millions more records.
The focus on connecting the largest schemes first means that employees in bigger organisations will be among the earliest to benefit. Curry said: “You notice there’s a bit of disconnect in terms of the proportion of memberships versus the proportion of schemes. That’s because we’re connecting the biggest schemes first, which allows more people to find more pensions earlier.”
Curry confirmed that 18 of the original 19 organisations have now completed the most technical element of the process, testing data flows and security. A further three organisations are preparing to reach that stage.
Meanwhile, consumer testing is underway to ensure the dashboards are secure, have sufficient data connected, and provide a positive user experience. For HR teams, this will likely translate into a rise in employee queries. Curry stressed: “We need to make sure providers are geared up to answer those questions.”
This has clear implications for employers too, as staff begin to engage more actively with their pensions and seek guidance.
Future dashboard landscape
Curry also underlined that the MoneyHelper dashboard will not be the only option available.
“Eventually, there will be more than one pensions dashboard. If we concentrate on launching one first, we’re likely to get there sooner than if we were trying to launch multiple dashboards.”
Workers may eventually have access to multiple platforms, but the first launch is likely to set the tone for adoption.
Accurate data
Finally, Curry urged schemes to ensure their records are up to date, noting that accurate information will be fundamental to the programme’s success.
“Data is the key for pensions dashboards. There’s lots of help out there from TPR, FCA, and the pensions dashboards programme itself,” he said.
This reinforces the importance of working closely with providers to ensure employee data is correct and values are calculated accurately.
