A State Pension is a pension given by the state. You pay for this pension through the National Insurance contributions you pay during your working life. More information on National Insurance Contributions is available on the Inland Revenue website at http://www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/nic/index.htm .
The State Pension age for women will be raised to 65 from 6 April 2020 to be in line with the current State Pension age for men. The State Pension age for women will start to increase gradually from 2010. If you were born before 6th April 1950 you are unaffected by this, and can still claim your State Pension from the age of 60. If you were born on, or after 6th April 1955, then you will receive your State Pension at the age of 65.
If you cannot get a full State Pension based on your own NI record and you're a married woman you may still be able to get a pension based on your husband's NI record, however you can only do so if your husband is already receiving a State Pension and you are aged 60 or over.
If you are divorced but your own National Insurance record isn't good enough to get the full State Pension, you may be able to get a pension based on your former spouse's record.
If you have chosen to carry on working after claiming your State Pension, your earnings will not affect how much State Pension you get, although any extra pension you get for a dependant may be affected.
As a widow or widower, you may be able to get a State Pension based on your husband or wife's NI record, and you may also be able to get a State Pension based upon your husband or wife's additional State Pension, further information is available online at http://www.thepensionservice.gov.uk/atoz/atozdetailed/addstatepen.asp .
If you have a husband or wife who is due to reach State Pension age before 6 October 2002, you may be able to claim their entire SERPS or Additional State Pension when they die. More information on inheriting SERPS can be found on the relevant section of the Pension Service website at http://www.thepensionservice.gov.uk/serps .
If your spouse is due to reach State Pension age between 5 Oct 2002 and 6 Oct 2010, you will receive between 60 and 90 percent of their SERPS, depending on when they reach State Pension age during this period.
The maximum amount of additional State Pension that a surviving husband or wife can inherit will be 50%. If you put off claiming your State Pension when you reach State Pension age, you can earn extra pension called increments. The weekly amount of your pension will be higher, but you will not get any pension for the weeks you put off claiming. For more information contact The Pension Service at http://www.thepensionservice.gov.uk/contact_us/contact_us_homepage.asp.
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