Students Awards Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1991

PART III Maintenance of dependants

12.—(1) The requirements referred to in regulation 13(1)(a) shall include the student’s requirements for the maintenance of dependants during the year and the amount of any such requirement (“dependants requirement”) shall be determined in accordance with this Part.

(2) Where a student’s requirements for the maintenance of dependants are different in respect of different parts of a year, his dependants requirement for that year shall be the aggregate of the proportionate parts of those differing requirements.

13.—(1) In this Part—

• “adult dependant” means, in relation to a student, an adult person dependent on the student not being his child, his spouse or a person living with him as his spouse or his former spouse, subject however to sub-paragraphs (2) and (3);

• “child”, in relation to a student, includes a person whether under or over compulsory school age, an illegitimate child, a person adopted in pursuance of adoption proceedings, a step-child and any child whose guardian or custodian the student is and who is dependent on him;

• “dependant” means, in relation to a student, his dependent child, his spouse or an adult dependant, subject however to sub-paragraphs (2) and (3);

• “income” means income for the year from all sources less—

  (a)

  income tax, social security contributions and child benefit;

  (b)

  any attendance allowance under section 35 or mobility allowance under section 37A of the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Act 1975(1), or any mobility supplement provided for in an order made under section 12(1) of the Social Security (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1977(2);

  (c)

  in the case of the student’s spouse, where she or the student makes any payment which was previously made by him in pursuance of an obligation incurred before the first year of his course—

  (i)

  if, in the opinion of the board, the obligation had been reasonably so incurred, an amount equal to the payment in question;

  (ii)

  if, in its opinion, only a lesser obligation could have been reasonably so incurred, such correspondingly lesser amount (if any) as appears to it appropriate; and

  (d)

  in the case of the student’s spouse, where a child in the care of the Department of Health and Social Services or a Health and Social Services Board is boarded out with her, any payment made to her in pursuance of section 114(1) of the Children and Young Persons Act (Northern Ireland) 1968(3); and

  (e)

  in the case of the student’s spouse, any guardian’s allowance to which she is entitled under section 38 of the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Act 1975(4);

• “relevant award” means a statutory award in respect of a person’s attendance at a full-time course of higher education or a comparable course outside Northern Ireland;

• “spouse”, except in the definition of adult dependant, shall not include a student’s spouse if they have ceased ordinarily to live together whether or not an order for their separation has been made by any court.

(2) A person, including the student’s spouse, shall not be treated as a dependant of the student during any period for which that person—

(a) holds a relevant award; or

(b) (save for the purposes of paragraph 17) is ordinarily living outside the United Kingdom.

(3) A person shall not be treated as a student’s adult dependant or as his dependent child—

(a) in the case of a person other than a child of the student, if his income exceeds by £675 or more the sum specified in paragraph 14(4)(a);

(b) in the case of a child of a student who either has a spouse who is, or but for sub-paragraph (2) would be, his dependant or has an adult dependant, if the child’s income exceeds by £675 or more the sum specified in paragraph 14(4)(b) and applicable to his age;

(c) in the case of a child of a student not falling within head (b), if either—

(i) the child is the only or eldest child dependent on the student whose income exceeds by £675 or more the sum specified in paragraph 14(4)(a); or

(ii) the child’s income exceeds by £675 or more the sum specified in paragraph 14(4)(b) and applicable to his age.

14.—(1) This paragraph shall apply in the case of all students with dependants.

(2) The dependants requirement of the student shall, subject to paragraphs 15 and 16 be—

(a) if the student’s spouse holds a statutory award and in calculating payments under it account is taken of the spouse’s dependants requirement, one half of the amount determined in accordance with sub-paragraphs (3) and (4);

(b) in any other case, the whole of the amount so determined.

(3) The amount referred to in sub-paragraph (2) shall be the amount which is

where—

a

X is the aggregate of the relevant sums specified in sub-paragraph (4);

b

Y is the aggregate of the income of the student’s dependants:

c

Z is so much of the sum ascertained by multiplying £675 by the number of his dependants as does not exceed Y.

(4) The relevant sums referred to in sub-paragraph (3) are—

(a) except where the student has a spouse who is the holder of a relevant award, £1,615;

(b) in respect of each dependent child—

(i) under the age of 11 immediately before the beginning of the academic year, or born during that year, £340;

(ii) then aged 11 or over, but under 16, £680;

(iii) then aged 16 or over but under 18, £895;

(iv) then aged 18 or over, £1,290,

except that the only or eldest dependent child shall be disregarded for the purposes hereof if the student has neither an adult dependant nor a spouse who is, or but for paragraph 13(2) would be, a dependant.

15.—(1) This paragraph shall apply in the case of a student with dependants who maintains a home for himself and a dependant at a place other than that at which he resides while attending the course.

(2) The student’s dependants requirement (determined in accordance with paragraph 14(2)(a) or 14(2)(b)) shall be increased by £570.

16.—(1) This paragraph shall apply in the case of a student who maintains a dependant outside the United Kingdom.

(2) Notwithstanding anything in the foregoing paragraphs of this Part, the student’s dependants requirement shall be such amount, if any, as the board considers reasonable in all the circumstances, not exceeding the amount determined in accordance with those paragraphs.

(1)

Section 35 was amended by Article 3 of the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Order 1979 (S.I. 1979/396 (N.I. .5)), paragraph 8 of Part II of Schedule 1 to the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Order 1980 (S.I. 1980/870 (N.I. 8)), Article 3(1) of the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Order 1988 (S.I. 1988/594 (N.I. 2)) and paragraph 5 of Schedule 8 to the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Order 1989 (S.I. 1989/1342 (N.I. 13)) and Article 3(1) and (2) of the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Order 1990 (S.I. 1990/1511 (N.I. 15)). Section 37A was inserted by Article 24(1) of the Social Security Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1975 (S.I. 1975/1503 (N.I. 15)) and amended by Article 4 of the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Order 1979 and Article 72(1) to (3) of, and Schedule 10 to, the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Order 1986 (S.I. 1986/1888 (N.I. 18)) and Article 10 of the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Order 1989

(2)

1977 c. 5. The relevant order currently in force is the Naval, Military and Air Forces. Etc. (Disablement and Death) Service Pensions Order 1983 (S.I. 1983/883 amended by S.I. 1983/1116, 1983/1521, 1986/592, 1990/250 and 1990/1308)

(3)

1968 c. 34 (N.I.)

(4)

Section 38 was amended by paragraph 13 of Schedule 4 and by Schedule 5 to the Child Benefit (Northern Ireland) Order 1975 (S.I. 1975/1504 (N.I. 16)) and by Article 46 of the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Order 1986 (S.I. 1986/1888 (N.I. 18))