Statutory Rules of Northern Ireland
2008 No. 290
Social Security
The Social Security (Students Responsible for Children or Young Persons) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008
Made
8th July 2008
Coming into operation
9th July 2008
Approved by resolution of the Assembly on
14th October 2008
The Department for Social Development makes the following Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 122(1)(a), 123(1)(d) and (e) and 171(1) and (3) of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits (Northern Ireland) Act 1992(1) and Articles 8(4) and 36(2) of the Jobseekers (Northern Ireland) Order 1995(2) and now vested in it(3).
Citation, commencement and interpretation
1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Social Security (Students Responsible for Children or Young Persons) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008 and shall come into operation on the day after the day on which they are made.
(2) The Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954(4) shall apply to these Regulations as it applies to an Act of the Assembly.
Amendment of the Income Support (General) Regulations
2. In regulation 4ZA(5) (prescribed categories of person) of the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987(6), for paragraph (3)(c)(7) substitute—
“(c)any other paragraph of Schedule 1B applies to him and—
(i)in the case of a person with a partner, the partner is also a full-time student and either he or his partner is treated as responsible for a child or young person, or
(ii)in any other case, he is treated as responsible for a child or young person,
but this provision applies only for the period of the summer vacation appropriate to his course.”.
Amendment of the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations
3.—(1) The Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996(8) are amended in accordance with paragraphs (2) to (5).
(2) The existing provisions of regulation 15(9) (circumstances in which a person is not to be regarded as available) become paragraph (1) of that regulation.
(3) For the provision that becomes regulation 15(1)(a) substitute—
“(a)subject to paragraph (2), if he is a full-time student during the period of study;”.
(4) After the provisions that become regulation 15(1) add—
“(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1)(a), a full-time student shall be regarded as available for employment during the period of the summer vacation appropriate to his course, but only if the first and second conditions are satisfied.
(3) The first condition is satisfied if—
(a)in the case of a student with a partner, the partner is also a full-time student and either of them is treated as responsible for a child or a young person, or
(b)in any other case, the student is treated as responsible for a child or young person.
(4) The second condition is satisfied if the student is—
(a)available for employment in accordance with this Chapter, or
(b)treated as available for employment in accordance with regulation 14(1)(a) or (ja)(10).”.
(5) In regulations 14(1)(11) (circumstances in which a person is to be treated as available) and 17A(1)(12) (further circumstances in which a person is to be treated as available: full-time students participating in a qualifying course), and in paragraph 13(8)(b) of Schedule 2 (housing costs), for “15(a)”, in each place where it occurs, substitute “15(1)(a)”.
Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department for Social Development on 8th July 2008
(L.S.)
John O’Neill
A senior officer of the Department for Social Development
EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This note is not part of the Regulations)
These Regulations amend the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987 (“the Income Support Regulations”) and the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996 (“the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations”).
A person may claim income support only if he or she is within a category of persons prescribed in Schedule 1B to the Income Support Regulations. Regulation 4ZA(3)(c) provides that a full-time student can fall within certain prescribed categories (for example carers or those who are incapable of work) only during the summer vacation and only then if he or she: (a) has a partner who is also a full-time student, and (b) is a person (or whose partner is a person) with responsibility for a child or young person. While retaining the requirement that, if a person has a partner, that partner must also be a full-time student so as to fall within those prescribed categories during the summer vacation, these Regulations extend the provision so that a full-time student who does not have a partner can also fall within the prescribed categories.
A person claiming a jobseeker’s allowance has to be available for employment (see Article 3(2)(a) of the Jobseekers (Northern Ireland) Order 1995). Regulation 15 of the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations specifies that a full-time student is not to be regarded as available for employment except – for the period only of the summer vacation – where the claimant: (a) has a partner who is also a full-time student, and (b) is a person (or whose partner is a person) with responsibility for a child or young person. While retaining the requirement that, if a person has a partner, that partner must also be a full-time student for the exception to apply, these Regulations extend the provision so that a full-time student who does not have a partner can also fall within the exception – and recast regulation 15 so as to incorporate that extension.
These Regulations make in relation to Northern Ireland only provision corresponding to provision contained in Regulations made by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in relation to Great Britain and accordingly, by virtue of section 149(3) of, and paragraph 10 of Schedule 5 to, the Social Security Administration (Northern Ireland) Act 1992, are not subject to the requirement of section 149(2) of that Act for prior reference to the Social Security Advisory Committee.
1992 c. 7; section 123(1)(d) was substituted by paragraph 13(4) of Schedule 2 to the Jobseekers (Northern Ireland) Order 1995 (S.I. 1995/2705 (N.I. 15)), section 123(1)(e) was inserted by paragraph 13(5) of Schedule 2 to the Jobseekers (Northern Ireland) Order 1995 and the word “and” was repealed by Schedule 3 to the State Pension Credit Act (Northern Ireland) 2002 (c. 14 (N.I.)) and section 171(1) was amended by paragraph 5 of Schedule 4 to the Tax Credits Act 2002 (c. 21)
See Article 8(b) of S.R. 1999 No. 481
Regulation 4ZA was inserted by regulation 4 of S.R. 1996 No. 199
S.R. 1987 No. 459; relevant amending Regulations are S.R. 1996 No. 199 and S.R. 2000 Nos. 71 and 241
Regulation 4ZA(3) was amended by regulation 5(3) of S.R. 2000 No. 71 and regulation 3(5) and the Schedule to, S.R. 2000 No. 241
S.R. 1996 No. 198; relevant amending Regulations are S.R. 1996 No. 358, S.R. 1997 No. 138, S.R. 1998 No. 198, S.R. 1999 Nos. 107 and 468, S.R. 2001 No. 56, S.R. 2002 No. 388, S.R. 2004 No. 308, S.R. 2006 Nos. 234 and 359 and S.R. 2008 No. 112
Regulation 15 was amended by regulation 3 of S.R. 1997 No. 138, regulation 2(4) of S.R. 2002 No. 388 and regulation 4(4) of S.R. 2008 No. 112
Regulation 14(1)(ja) was inserted by regulation 2(2) of S.R. 1999 No. 107 and amended by regulation 4(3) of S.R. 2008 No. 112
Regulation 14(1) was amended by regulation 5(2)(b) of S.R. 1996 No. 358, regulation 2(2) and (3) of S.R. 1997 No. 138, regulation 2(2) of S.R. 1999 No. 107, regulation 2 of S.R. 1999 No. 468, regulation 2(2) of S.R. 2001 No. 56, regulation 3(2) of S.R. 2004 No. 308, regulation 3(3)(a) and (b) of S.R. 2006 No. 234, regulation 13(3)(a) of S.R. 2006 No. 359 and regulation 4(3) of S.R. 2008 No. 112
Regulation 17A was inserted by regulation 4 of S.R. 1998 No. 198