Tracey Ford, a self-employed celebrant from Johnstone, Scotland, is taking steps to start a pension after three decades without saving for retirement. Despite working for herself for around 30 years, irregular income has made it difficult to prioritise pension contributions.
The pension gap for the self-employed
Unlike employed workers, self-employed individuals are not automatically enrolled into a pension scheme. According to the latest Scottish Widows retirement report, more than one in three self-employed workers (35%) are at risk of pension poverty, and 4.39 million self-employed people remain outside the UK's auto-enrolment system.
Tracey, now 53, said: “I had a company pension when I was younger when I was working for an insurance company, but I think it's only a few thousand pounds. I don't really know exactly how much.” She added: “When I became self-employed, it was the last thing on my mind, to be honest, because you worked week to week, month to month. There have always been other priorities.”
A career change sparks action
Tracey has had a varied career as a freelance singer, performer, and fitness instructor. In the last two years, she retrained as a wedding and funeral celebrant. Her business has grown significantly: from 15 weddings last year to 42 this year, with about 35 booked for next year and some for 2028.
“I'm going to be able to be a celebrant longer than I would be a performer, so I think it's time to get something in place before it's too late,” she said. The advance bookings allow her to plan her finances more effectively.
Plan to start saving
Tracey plans to use some savings to start a private pension later this year. She hopes to save between £10,000 and £15,000 and will put half of that into a pension. “I do know that by the end of this year, I plan to have a lump sum in my head. It is a bit scary because I have left it late in my life,” she said.
She also has a pension from her ex-husband's retirement, though it is not substantial. Despite the late start, she urges others not to delay: “It's easy to say in hindsight, that I should have done this earlier. But I would definitely advise people at an early age to look into the type of pensions that are available. I also think there's probably a pension for everyone's income. But it's never too late.”
