What are Investment Pathways?
Helping you make smarter retirement choices
Planning for retirement can feel daunting - especially without financial advice. That’s why we’ve introduced Investment Pathways, a simple, clear way to help you make informed choices about how to use your pension.
You’ll have four clear options, each linked to a carefully selected investment approach designed to support your goals.
If your circumstances or plans change, you can switch to another pathway or choose your own investments at any time.
Investing with confidence: Nucleus Investment Pathways
Which Investment Pathway is right for me?
There are four investment options to choose from, each designed around different goals you might have for your pension savings.
Investment Pathway 1 - I don’t plan to take money from my pension in the next five years
If you choose Investment Pathway 1, your money will be invested with a balance of growth and protection, helping you support your longer-term goals
Investment Pathway 2 - I plan to use my pension to set up a guaranteed income in the next five years
If you choose Investment Pathway 2, your money will be invested to reflect changes in annuity rates, helping you stay aligned with your plans
Investment Pathway 3 - I plan to start taking a steady income in the next five years
If you choose Investment Pathway 3, your money will be invested to support steady growth while helping to provide stability as you start taking income
Investment Pathway 4 - I plan to withdraw all my money in the next five years
If you choose Investment Pathway 4, your money will be invested with the aim of keeping it steady in the short term
CT Universal Multi-Asset Portfolio Balance C Acc
Who is this fund for?
This fund is suitable for non-advised customers who are approaching retirement and want to grow their savings over time without having to actively manage their investments. It’s suited to people planning to stay invested for at least five years and who prefer a more hands-off approach.
What does the fund aim to do?
The fund aims to grow your money steadily over the long term while keeping risk at a moderate level. It seeks to:
- Deliver a mix of capital growth and income
- Keep investment ups and downs (volatility) within a range of 8–10% over a 10-year period
How does it work?
Your money is invested across a balanced mix of:
- Company shares (40–60%) – for growth
- Government and corporate bonds – for stability to help improve returns
- Cash – for flexibility and risk control
The fund is reviewed every three months by the fund manager, who can adjust the mix to help keep it on track and make the most of market opportunities.
What are the details?
Annual fund charge: 0.55% (This covers the cost of managing the fund and is automatically deducted from your investment and reflected in the fund price, by the fund management company).
ISIN Code: GB00BF99W060 (This is a unique identifier used to find the fund on investment platforms).
Risk rating: 4 out of 7
AXA Sterling Credit Short Duration Bond Z Inc
Who is this fund for?
This fund is suitable for non-advised customers who are nearing retirement and plan to buy a guaranteed income product, like an annuity, within the next five years. It’s ideal if you’d like a steady income with some growth potential, but don’t want to take too much risk or have to manage things closely yourself.
What does the fund aim to do?
The fund aims to provide:
- Regular income
- Some capital growth over the short term, with a focus on stability
How does it work?
To help keep returns steady and reduce risk, the fund mainly invests in:
- Corporate bonds – these are loans to companies that pay interest and mature within five years, helping reduce sensitivity to interest rate changes. These bonds are denominated in sterling (UK currency).
The fund manager keeps a close eye on the investments, carefully selecting and adjusting them to keep performance as smooth and predictable as possible.
What are the details?
Annual fund charge: 0.45% (this covers the cost of managing the fund and is automatically deducted from your investment and reflected in the fund price, by the fund management company).
ISIN Code: GB00B5VL0B78 (This is a unique identifier used to find the fund on investment platforms).
Risk Rating: 3 out of 7
Waverton Multi-Asset Income Fund P Inc
Who is this fund for?
This option is suitable for non-advised customers who are approaching retirement and want to start using their pension savings to provide a regular income within the next five years. It’s a good fit if you’d like your money to keep working for you while drawing a steady income.
What does the fund aim to do?
This fund aims to give you a steady income while helping your savings grow enough to keep up with inflation over the long term.
It targets a return of inflation (CPI) plus 2.5% per year over at least five years, with around 3–4% expected to come from income. Keep in mind that returns may vary depending on interest rates and market conditions.
How does it work?
Your money is spread across different types of investments — such as shares, bonds, and other assets — to help balance growth, income, and stability. The fund managers carefully decide how much to invest in each area to meet the fund’s goals of growing your savings, providing income, and protecting your money over time.
What are the details?
Fund charge: 0.64% (This covers the cost of managing the fund and is automatically deducted from your investment and reflected in the fund price, by the fund management company).
ISIN Code: IE00BQ1KPQ19 (This is a unique identifier used to find the fund on investment platforms).
Risk Rating: 4 out of 7
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Who is this fund for?
This fund is suitable for non-advised customers who are nearing retirement and plan to take out all their pension savings within the next five years. It’s suited to those who want to keep their money safe and easy to access in the short term.
What does the fund aim to do?
The fund aims to protect your savings and keep them safe while providing returns similar to short-term interest rates.
It seeks to match the performance of money market returns, typically just below the Sterling Overnight Index Average (SONIA), after fees.
How does it work?
Your money is invested in short-term, low-risk financial products from carefully selected institutions with strong credit ratings. It’s designed to keep your money safe and stable, with most investments maturing within 30 to 60 days — meaning your savings stay accessible and low-risk.
What are the details?
Fund charge: 0.15% (This covers the cost of managing the fund and is automatically deducted from your investment and reflected in the fund price, by the fund management company).
ISIN Code: GB00B0CNHB64 (This is a unique identifier used to find the fund on investment platforms).
Risk Rating: 1 out of 7
Before you make your choice
Helping you make smarter retirement choices
Before choosing how to invest your pension, begin by thinking about how you’d like your money to support you in retirement. Everyone’s goals are different, so the way you invest and access your pension will depend on your own plans and circumstances.
It’s also useful to look at what you’ve already built up and the level of income you might need in the years ahead. This can help you balance how much risk you’re comfortable taking with the potential for your investments to grow.
Keep in mind that the value of investments can go down as well as up, and you could get back less than you originally invested.
Other financial services providers also offer Investment Pathway options, so you may benefit from shopping around. You can access an Investment Pathways comparison tool at moneyhelper.org.uk/pathways.
If you’re unsure which option feels right for you, a financial adviser can help you decide what’s most suitable for your situation.
Your best interests
At Nucleus, we want to make sure our Investment Pathways continue to deliver good outcomes and real value for our customers. That’s why we work with an independent body to regularly review how our pathways perform.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) asks all providers of Investment Pathways to have this type of independent oversight in place - known as a Governance Advisory Arrangement (GAA). Ours is carried out by Zedra, who review our Investment Pathways and report on how well they serve our customers’ best interests.
For more information:
Ready to get started?
Our client relations team can help you explore your Investment Pathway options. Whether you're planning to grow your pension, generate income, or withdraw funds, we’re here to help you make the most of your retirement.
If you’d like to access your Nucleus pension and don’t have a financial adviser, our client relations team are here to help.
You can get in touch on 0131 226 9535 (option 1) or email client.relations@nucleusfinancial.com to discuss the next steps.
We’ll then send you the documents you need, including information on how to choose one of our Investment Pathways if you decide that’s right for you.
Investment Pathways FAQs
Customer’s entering drawdown (crystallising their Nucleus pension account to access their pension pot) or for those transferring a pension already in drawdown from another provider on a non-advised basis.
No, we provide Investment Pathways as a simple, good value investment option (for customers who are entering drawdown on a non-advised basis) in line with FCA guidelines for those who are unsure about how to invest their pension funds.
No, you can switch out of Investment Pathways at any time.
Yes, you can switch between pathway options at any time.
Nothing, unless you give us an instruction. There is no maturity date or automatic closure date for Investment Pathways, you would remain invested in the Investment Pathway after five years if you don’t give us an instruction to switch.
You’ll only incur the fund charges for the underlying fund which are deducted by the fund management company and reflected in the fund price displayed on our platform. Nucleus don’t take any charges from you for providing Investment Pathway options.
The current Investment Pathways funds have no asset specific minimum investment amount. Please see the terms and conditions for selected pension product for any product specific minimum investment amounts.
We reserve the right to make changes. However, the funds have been selected as longer term solutions and therefore we don’t anticipate regular changes to the four Investment Pathway funds. Any changes to the funds will be communicated to you.
We’ve designed our Investment Pathway solution in line with FCA guidelines. Funds have been selected to meet the criteria for each of the four Investment Pathways and are suitable for non-advised customers.
If you're unsure whether an Investment Pathway is the right choice for your retirement needs, we always recommend seeking independent financial advice.
Not exactly, you have the freedom to transfer away from Nucleus at any time, however the receiving provider will likely have their own Investment Pathway offering which will be presented to you when you complete their ‘drawdown to drawdown transfer’ process. Your Investment Pathway fund could be sold down as part of any transfer out request and the cash proceeds sent to your chosen new pension provider to invest as per your agreement with them. Alternatively, you could transfer the asset in-specie, but your new pension provider may not use this asset as a pathway investment.