These Regulations, which come into operation on 1st December 2003 and have effect on and from 1st September 2003 revoke and replace, with amendments the Students Awards Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2002.

Retrospection is authorised by Article 50(2) of the Education and Libraries (Northern Ireland) Order 1986.

The changes of substance made by these Regulations other than the changes in the rates of fees, grants and allowances are described in the following paragraphs.

The definition of “high cost country” in regulation 2 is omitted.

Regulation 2 defines and regulation 6 gives effect to the Switzerland agreement which provides that Swiss nationals are to be treated in the same way as EEA nationals.

Schedule 6 has been amended as follows – a paragraphs 2 and 5 have been amended to link the London grant rate for course attendance and work experience to the site of study or work experience rather than the location of the institution, it also provides that the London rate applies where at least half the aggregate course time in the academic year is at a site or sites within the London area as defined, the same paragraph applies one rate in relation to attendance at any overseas institution; b the definition of “dependants” in paragraph 12(1) has been amended to take account of children for whom the student or his spouse receive child tax credit under Part I of the Tax Credits Act 2002; c paragraph 13(1) has been amended to provide that a student may only be entitled to dependants requirement for an adult dependant whose net income does not exceed the prescribed amount or a spouse; d paragraph 13(2) sets out the amounts by which a student’s dependants requirement may be reduced or extinguished based on the aggregate of the net income of each of his dependants, a student will no longer be able to obtain an increase in his dependants requirement for children or travel, books and equipment; e paragraph 14(1) has been amended to provide that where a student or his spouse has elected not to receive the child care element of the working tax credit under Part I of the Tax Credits Act 2002 the dependants requirement shall be increased in respect of child care costs; f there is no equivalent to paragraph 14(2) as it appeared in the Students Awards Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2002, as a result a student will no longer receive an increase in dependants requirement for school meals or to help with the maintenance of a second home where his dependant or dependants reside but he does not.

Schedule 7 has been amended as follows – a paragraph 2(1) has been amended so that the definition of “financial year” no longer takes account of the transitional provisions relating to income tax legislation of the Republic of Ireland and the assessment of parental contribution which have been omitted from the Regulations; b paragraph 4(1) provides that a parental contribution in respect of more than one child cannot exceed the parental contribution that would apply if only that child held an award; c paragraph 4(2) provides that the Department’s discretion to determine how to apportion the parental contribution shall only apply where a statutory award other than under the Education Student Support Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2003 or section 63 of the Health Services and Public Health Act 1968 is held by any of the specified persons, also, the parental contribution is apportioned equally where sub-paragraph 4 does not apply subject to exceptions.