Amendment of the Income Support (General) Regulations 1987
2.—(1) The Income Support (General) Regulations 1987() shall be amended in accordance with the following paragraphs of this regulation.
(2) In regulation 42() (notional income)—
(a)in paragraph (6)—
(i)at the beginning, there shall be inserted the words “Subject to paragraph (6A),”;
(ii)the words from “; but this paragraph” to the end of the paragraph shall be omitted;
(b)after paragraph (6) there shall be inserted the following paragraphs—
“(6A) Paragraph (6) shall not apply—
(a)to a claimant who is engaged by a charitable or voluntary organisation or who is a volunteer if the adjudication officer is satisfied in any of those cases that it is reasonable for him to provide the service free of charge;
(b)in a case where the service is performed in connection with the claimant’s participation in an employment or training programme in accordance with regulation 19(1)(q) of the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations 1996; or
(c)to a claimant who is engaged in work experience whilst participating in—
(i)the New Deal for Lone Parents(); or
(ii)a scheme which has been approved by the Secretary of State as supporting the objectives of the New Deal for Lone Parents,
but this sub-paragraph shall only apply in respect of a claimant to the extent that he has been engaged in such work experience during the period specified in paragraph (6B).
(6B) The period specified for the purposes of paragraph (6A)(c) shall be the period commencing on the day on which the claimant was first engaged in such work experience with an employer and ending on the day—
(a)which is 26 weeks after that day where he has been engaged in such work experience with that employer throughout that period; or
(b)on which he completed 150 hours of such work experience with that employer,
whichever shall first occur.
(6C) In determining the number of hours of work experience which the claimant has completed for the purposes of paragraph (6B)(b), no account shall be taken of any time allowed to that claimant by his employer for a meal.”.
(c)in sub-paragraph (a) of paragraph (6A), for the words “adjudication officer” there shall be substituted the words “Secretary of State”.
(3) For sub-paragraph (d) in paragraph 13 of Schedule 9 (sums to be disregarded in the calculation of income other than earnings) there shall be substituted the following sub-paragraph—
“(d)any child care expenses reimbursed to the claimant in respect of his participation in—
(i)an employment programme specified in regulation 75(1)(a)(ii) of the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations 1996 or in a training scheme specified in regulation 75(1)(b)(ii) of those Regulations; or
(ii)the New Deal for Lone Parents or in a scheme which has been approved by the Secretary of State as supporting the objectives of the New Deal for Lone Parents,”.