There are two parts to the State pension:
Basic State Pension
The Basic State Pension for a single person is currently around £412 a month and for a married couple is just less than £660 a month. To put this in perspective, if you earn £20,000 now, your monthly income is £1,670, so your Basic State Pension will only make up 25% of your current income. You may also be entitled to additional benefits through the State Second Pension.
State Second Pension
This currently provides three levels of benefits based on your earnings. However, changes which started in April 2009 mean that the State Second Pension will eventually become a fixed amount instead of being related to earnings. These pensions are payable from state pension age and they are not included in the lifetime allowance.
If you have questions relating to State pensions or you wish to find out your state retirement age, visit the Direct.gov website.
The LGPS is contracted out of the State Second Pension.