The Employment and Support Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008

PART 4 CONDITIONS OF ENTITLEMENT – INCOME-RELATED ALLOWANCE

Meaning of education

14.—(1) Subject to regulations 15 and 16, for the purposes of paragraph 6 of Schedule 1 to the Act, “education” means a course of study to which paragraph (2) applies which is being undertaken at an educational establishment.

(2) This paragraph applies to a course of study which is—

(a) a full-time course of study, whether or not a grant is made for attending or undertaking it; or

(b) a sandwich course within the meaning of regulation 2(8) of the Education (Student Support) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2007(1), regulation 2(9) of the Education (Student Support) Regulations 2008(2) or regulation 4(2) of the Education (Student Loans) (Scotland) Regulations 2007(3).

Claimants to be treated as receiving education

15.  Subject to regulation 18, a qualifying young person is to be treated as receiving education for the purposes of paragraph 6(1)(g) of Schedule 1 to the Act.

Claimants not to be treated as receiving education

16.  Where a claimant is under 19 but not a qualifying young person, that claimant is not to be treated as receiving education where the course of study is not—

(a) a course leading to a postgraduate degree or comparable qualification, a first degree or comparable qualification, a diploma of higher education or a higher national diploma; or

(b) any other course which is of a standard above advanced GNVQ or equivalent, including a course which is of a standard above a general certificate of education (advanced level) or above a Scottish national qualification (higher or advanced higher).

Course of study

17.—(1) For the purposes of the definition of “education” in regulation 14, a person is to be regarded as undertaking a course of study—

(a) subject to paragraph (2), in the case of a person undertaking a part of a modular course that would be a course of study for the purposes of these Regulations, for the period beginning on the day on which that part of the course starts and ending—

(i) on the last day on which the person is registered with the educational establishment as attending or undertaking that part as a full-time course of study, or

(ii) on such earlier date (if any) as the person finally abandons the course or is dismissed from it;

(b) in any other case, throughout the period beginning on the date on which the person starts undertaking the course and ending on the last day of the course or on such earlier date (if any) as the person finally abandons it or is dismissed from it.

(2) For the purpose of sub-paragraph (a) of paragraph (1), the period referred to in that sub-paragraph includes—

(a) where a person has failed examinations or has failed to successfully complete a module relating to a period when the person was attending or undertaking a part of the course as a course of study, any period in respect of which the person attends or undertakes the course for the purpose of retaking those examinations or that module;

(b) any period of vacation within the period specified in that paragraph or immediately following that period except where the person has registered with the educational establishment to attend or undertake the final module in the course and the vacation immediately follows the last day on which the person is required to attend or undertake the course.

(3) In paragraph (1), “modular course” means a course of study which consists of 2 or more modules, the successful completion of a specified number of which is required before a person is considered by the educational establishment to have completed the course.

Circumstances in which the condition that the claimant is not receiving education does not apply

18.  Paragraph 6(1)(g) of Schedule 1 to the Act does not apply where the claimant is entitled to a disability living allowance.

(1)

S.R. 2007 No. 195

(2)

S.I. 2008/529

(3)

S.S.I. 2007/154