The Individual Learning Account (Scotland) Amendment (No. 2) Regulations 2008

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the Individual Learning Account (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (“the principal regulations”). The principal regulations specify arrangements which qualify under section 2 of the Education and Training (Scotland) Act 2000 and provide for the payment of grants in respect of persons who are parties to the qualifying arrangements.

These Regulations amend the principal regulations to remove the qualifying arrangements known as “ILA Scotland Universal Arrangements”. From the date that these Regulations come into force all qualifying arrangements will be targeted and known as “ILA Scotland”.

Regulation 5(4) amends regulation 3(3) of the principal regulations to provide that a learning account holder must have attained the age of 16 as opposed to 18 in order to be a qualifying person.

Regulation 5(5)(a) amends regulation 3(7)(a) of the principal regulations so that a person’s pension income will be included as gross income for the purpose of determining whether a learning account holder is a qualifying person. Regulation 5(6) inserts a definition of “pension income” into the principal regulations in the form of regulation 3(9A).

Regulation 5(5)(b), which comes into force on 27th October 2008, amends regulation 3(7)(b) of the principal regulations to take account of the introduction of the employment support allowance.

Regulation 8(a), which comes into force on 1st January 2009, amends regulation 11(1) of the principal regulations to provide that a learning account holder is not required to make a minimum contribution towards the cost of the approved learning before being eligible for a grant.