The Family Credit (General) Regulations 1987

Interpretation

37.  In this Chapter, unless the context otherwise requires—

“a course of advanced education” means—

(a)

a full-time course leading to a postgraduate degree or comparable qualification, a first degree or comparable qualification, a diploma of higher education, a higher national diploma, a higher national diploma of the Business & Technician Education Council or the Scottish Vocational Education Council or a teaching qualification; or

(b)

any other full-time course which is a course of a standard above ordinary national diploma, a national diploma of the Business & Technician Education Council or the Scottish Vocational Education Council, a general certificate of education (advanced level), a Scottish certificate of education (higher grade) or a Scottish certificate of sixth year studies;

“contribution” means any contribution in respect of the income of any other person which a Minister of the Crown or an education authority takes into account in assessing the amount of the student’s grant and by which that amount is, as a consequence, reduced;

“course of study” means any full-time course of study or sandwich course whether or not a grant is made for attending it;

“covenant income” means the gross income payable to a student under a Deed of Covenant by a person whose income is, or is likely to be, taken into account in assessing the student’s grant or award;

“education authority” means a government department, a local education authority as defined in section 114(1) of the Education Act 1944(1) (interpretation), an education authority as defined in section 135(1) of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980(2) (interpretation), an education and library board established under Article 3 of the Education and Libraries (Northern Ireland) Order 1986(3), any body which is a research council for the purposes of the Science and Technology Act 1965(4) or any analogous government department, authority, board or body of the Channel Islands, Isle of Man or any other country outside Great Britain;

“grant” means any kind of educational grant or award and includes any scholarship, studentship, exhibition, allowance or bursary;

“grant income” means—

(a)

any income by way of a grant;

(b)

any contribution which has been assessed whether or not it has been paid,

and any such contribution which is paid by way of a covenant shall be treated as part of the student’s grant income;

“period of study” means—

(a)

in the case of a course of study for one year or less, the period beginning with the start of the course to the end,

(b)

in the case of a course of study for more than one year, in the first or, as the case may be, any subsequent year of the course, the period beginning with the start of the course or, as the case may be, that year’s start and ending with either—

(i)

the day before the start of the next year of the course in a case where the student’s grant is assessed at a rate appropriate to his studying throughout the year, or, if he does not have a grant, where it would have been assessed at such a rate had he had one; or

(ii)

in any other case the day before the start of the normal summer vacation appropriate to his course;

“periods of experience” has the meaning prescribed in paragraph 1(1) of Schedule 5 to the Education (Mandatory Awards) Regulations 1987(5);

“sandwich course” has the meaning prescribed in paragraph 1(1) of Schedule 5 to the Education (Mandatory Awards) Regulations 1987;

“standard maintenance grant” means—

(a)

except where paragraph (b) applies, in the case of a student attending a course of study at the University of London or an establishment within the area comprising the City of London and the Metropolitan Police District, the amount specified for the time being in paragraph 2(2)(a) of Schedule 2 to the Education (Mandatory Awards) Regulations 1987 for such a student; and

(b)

in the case of a student residing at his parents' home, the amount specified in paragraph 3(2) thereof;

(c)

in any other case, the amount specified in paragraph 2(2) other than in sub-paragraph (a) or (b) thereof;

“student” means a person aged less than 19 who is attending a full-time course of advanced education or, as the case may be, a person aged 19 or over who is attending a full-time course of study at an educational establishment; and for the purposes of this definition—

(a)

a person who has started on such a course shall be treated as attending it throughout any period of term or vacation within it, until the end of the course or such earlier date as he abandons it or is dismissed from it;

(b)

a person on a sandwich course shall be treated as attending a full-time course of advanced education or, as the case may be, of study;

“year” in relation to a course, means the period of 12 months beginning on 1st January, 1st April or 1st September according to whether the academic year of the course in question begins in the spring, the summer or the autumn respectively.

(1)

1944 c. 31, as amended by S.I. 1974/595 article 3(22) Schedule 1 Part I and S.I. 1977/293, article 4(1).

(2)

1980 c. 44.

(3)

S.I. 1986/594 (NI 3).

(4)

1965 c. 4.

(5)

S.I. 1987/1261.