FBAR - pension accounts

do i have to report the pension account in the FBAR - like an "occupational" pension scheme (like a 401k or something, only in the UK)? 

in the Exceptions section of the guidance notes to FBAR it says:
IRA Owners and Beneficiaries. An owner or beneficiary of an IRA is
not required to report a foreign financial account held in the IRA.

Participants in and Beneficiaries of Tax-Qualified Retirement Plans.
A participant in or beneficiary of a retirement plan described in Internal
Revenue Code section 401(a), 403(a), or 403(b) is not required to report
a foreign financial account held by or on behalf of the retirement plan.

hence I am a tad confused as to what to do...

The exceptions you mention refer to US based schemes.

General practice for FBAR seems to be that a UK personal pension must be reported - the account is in your name and you have signature authority.

However, an employer defined benefit scheme (eg government/local government/university schemes), where there is no account in your name, does not need to be reported. If you want to be ultra cautious there is no problem including it, but you will not have a value for it.

Don't forget Form 8938 requirements also, which are different!
This may help: http://www.irs.gov/businesses/article/0,,id=255986,00.html

+1, I agree with Anchor. I would add that the final salary or DB plans of private employers also don't need to go on an FBAR.

If you have a retirement account like a SIPP, stakeholder, NEST etc where you have you own account and can direct the investments then that must go of FBAR.