Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, (a) on which dates and (b) by which means his Department has taken steps to raise awareness by way of publicity about changes to the UK state pension age for women born in the 1950s.

Between April 2009 and March 2011, the Department mailed women born between 6th April 1950 and 5th April 1953, informing them of their State Pension age under the 1995 Pensions Act. This involved sending 1.16 million letters to the affected women.

Following the 2011 changes, DWP wrote to individuals directly affected to inform them of the change to their State Pension age. This applied to women born between 6th April 1953 and 5th April 1960. These letters were sent between January 2012 and November 2013. This involved sending 5.77 million letters to the affected men and women.

In addition to writing directly to those affected, the Government provided a range of information in order for all individuals to be able to find out their State Pension age and conditions of their benefits. For example, following the Pensions Act 1995, State Pension estimates, issued to individuals on request, made the changes clear. Since 2000, the Department has issued 14 million State Pension estimates on request. Between 2003 and 2006, the Department issued about 16 million automatic pension forecasts, which were accompanied by a leaflet about State Pension age including equalisation. DWP also ran a pensions education campaign in 2004, which included informing people of the future equalisation of State Pension.