The Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987

PART IV APPLICABLE AMOUNTS

Applicable amounts

17.  Subject to regulations 18 to 22 and 70 (applicable amounts in other cases and reductions in applicable amounts and urgent cases), a claimant's weekly applicable amount shall be the aggregate of such of the following amounts as may apply in his case—

(a) an amount in respect of himself or, if he is a member of a couple, an amount in respect of both of them, determined in accordance with paragraph 1(1), (2) or (3), as the case may be, of Schedule 2 (personal allowances);

(b) an amount determined in accordance with paragraph 2 of Schedule 2 in respect of any child or young person who is a member of his family, except a child or young person whose capital, if calculated in accordance with Part V (income and capital) in like manner as for the claimant, except where otherwise provided, would exceed £3,000;

(c) if he is a member of a family of which at least one member is a child or young person, an amount determined in accordance with Part II of Schedule 2 (family premium);

(d) the amount of any premiums which may be applicable to him, determined in accordance with Parts III and IV of Schedule 2 (premiums);

(e) any amounts determined in accordance with Schedule 3 (housing costs) which may be applicable to him in respect of mortgage interest payments or such other housing costs as are prescribed in that Schedule.

Polygamous marriages

18.  Subject to regulations 19 to 22 and 70 (applicable amounts in other cases and reductions in applicable amounts and urgent cases), where a claimant is a member of a polygamous marriage his weekly applicable amount shall be the aggregate of such of the following amounts as may apply in his case—

(a) the highest amount applicable to him and one of his partners determined in accordance with paragraph 1(3) of Schedule 2 (personal allowances) as if he and that partner were a couple;

(b) an amount equal to the difference between the amounts specified in paragraph 1(3)(b) and (1)(c) of Schedule 2 in respect of each of his other partners;

(c) an amount determined in accordance with paragraph 2 of Schedule 2 in respect of any child or young person for whom he or a partner of his is responsible and who is a member of the same household except a child or young person whose capital, if calculated in accordance with Part V (income and capital) in like manner as for the claimant, except where otherwise provided, would exceed £3,000;

(d) if he or another partner of the polygamous marriage is responsible for a child or young person who is a member of the same household, the amount specified in Part II of Schedule 2 (family premiums);

(e) the amount of any premiums which may be applicable to him determined in accordance with Parts III and IV of Schedule 2 (premiums);

(f) any amounts determined in accordance with Schedule 3 (housing costs) which may be applicable to him in respect of mortgage interest payments or such other housing costs as are prescribed in that Schedule.

Persons in homes for persons in need and nursing homes

19.—(1) Subject to regulation 22 (reductions in applicable amounts) where—

(a) the claimant lives in a home for persons in need or nursing home; or

(b) if he is a member of a family—

(i) he and the members of his family live in such a home, or

(ii) he and the members of his family normally live in such a home and, where there is a period of temporary absence from the home of any member of the family, provided that the claimant or his partner lives in the home during that absence,

his weekly applicable amount shall, except in a case to which regulation 21 (special cases) or Part II of Schedule 4 (persons to whom regulation 19 does not apply) applies, be calculated in accordance with Part I of that Schedule.

(2) In this regulation and Schedule 4—

“nursing home” means—

(a)

any premises registered under Part I of the Nursing Homes and Nursing Agencies Act (Northern Ireland) 1971(1); or

(b)

any premises used for the reception of such persons or the provision of such nursing or services as is mentioned in section 10 of the Nursing Homes and Nursing Agencies Act (Northern Ireland) 1971 and which are maintained or controlled by any body of persons constituted by special Act of Parliament or incorporated by Royal Charter;

“home for persons in need” means an establishment which provides residential accommodation with both board and personal care for persons in need of personal care by reason of age and infirmity, past or present mental disorder, past or present dependence on alcohol or drugs, mental handicap or physical disability and which is—

(a)

registered under Article 35 of, and Schedule 5 to, the 1972 Order;

(b)

run by the Abbeyfield Society including all bodies corporate or incorporate which are affiliated to that Society; or

(c)

managed or provided by a body incorporated by Royal Charter or constituted by special Act of Parliament.

''temporary absence'' means—

(a)

in the case of a person who is over pensionable age, 52 weeks;

(b)

in any other case, 13 weeks.

(3) In Schedule 4 the expressions “age and infirmity”, “mental disorder”, “mental handicap”, “drug or alcohol dependence” and ''disablement'' have the same meanings as those expressions have for the purposes of the 1972 Order and regulations made thereunder.

Persons in board and lodging accommodation and hostels

20.—(1) Subject to regulation 22 (reductions in applicable amounts) where—

(a) the claimant lives in board and lodging accommodation or a hostel; or

(b) if he is a member of a family—

(i) he and the members of his family live in such accommodation, or

(ii) he and the members of his family normally live in such accommodation and, where there is a period of absence from the accommodation of any member of the family, provided that the claimant or his partner lives in the accommodation during that absence,

his weekly applicable amount shall, except in a case to which regulation 21 (special cases) or Part II of Schedule 5 (persons to whom regulation 20 does not apply) applies, be calculated in accordance with Part I of that Schedule.

(2) In this regulation and Schedule 5—

“board and lodging accommodation” means—

(a)

accommodation provided to the claimant or, if he is a member of a family, to him or any other members of his family, for a charge which is inclusive of the provision of that accommodation and at least some cooked or prepared meals which are both prepared and consumed in that accommodation or associated premises; or

(b)

accommodation provided in a hotel, guest-house, lodging-house or some similar establishment;

“board and lodging area” means anyone of the 14 areas in which the accommodation provided for the claimant is situated as specified in column (1) of Schedule 6 (board and lodging areas) comprising the social security office areas specified in column (2) thereof and described in the publication entitled “Supplementary Benefit Board and Lodging Areas in Northern Ireland” published by Her Majesty's Stationery Office in 1986(2) and any place which is not included in the description of a board and lodging area in the said publication shall be treated for the purposes of this regulation and Schedule 5 as forming part of the-board and lodging area nearest to it;

''hostel'' means an establishment not being a home for persons in need or a nursing home—

(a)

in which there is provided for persons generally or for a class of persons, residential accommodation, otherwise than in separate and self-contained premises, and either board or facilities for the preparation of food adequate to the needs of those persons, or both; and

(b)

which is—

(i)

managed by a housing association registered with the Department of the Environment for Northern Ireland in accordance with Article 124 of the Housing (Northern Ireland) Order 1981(3),

(ii)

operated other than on a commercial basis and in respect of which funds are provided wholly or in part by the Department, any other government department or agency,

(iii)

managed by a voluntary body or charity and provides care, support or supervision with a view to assisting those persons to be rehabilitated or resettled within the community, or

(iv)

for the purposes of any particular case, such other establishment of like nature as the Department may, in its discretion, determine.

Special cases

21.—(1) Subject to regulation 22 (reductions in applicable amounts) in the case of a person to whom any paragraph in column (1) of Schedule 7 (applicable amounts in special cases) applies, the amount included in the claimant's weekly amount in respect of him shall be the amount prescribed in the corresponding paragraph in column (2) of that Schedule; but no amount shall be included in respect of a child or young person if the capital of that child or young person calculated in accordance with Part V in like manner as for the claimant, except where otherwise provided, would exceed £3,000.

(2) In Schedule 7, for the purposes of paragraph 1, 2, 3 or 16 (patients), where a person has been a patient for 2 or more distinct periods separated by one or more intervals each not exceeding 28 days, he shall be treated as having been a patient continuously for a period equal in duration to the total of those distinct periods.

(3) In Schedule 7—

“person from abroad” means a person, who—

(a)

has a limited leave as defined in section 33(1) of the 1971 Act(4) to enter or remain in the United Kingdom which was given in accordance with any provision of the immigration rules (as defined in that section) which refers to there being, or to there needing to be, no recourse to public funds or to there being no charge on public funds during that limited leave; but this sub-paragraph shall not apply to a person who is a national of a member State, a state which is a signatory to the European Convention on Social and Medical Assistance (done in Paris on 11th December 1953)(5), the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man;

(b)

having a limited leave (as defined in section 33(1) of the 1971 Act) to enter or remain in the United Kingdom, has remained without further leave under that Act beyond the time limited by the leave;

(c)

is the subject of a deportation order being an order under section 5(1) of that Act (deportation) requiring him to leave and prohibiting him from entering the United Kingdom;

(d)

is adjudged by the immigration authorities to be an illegal entrant (as defined in section 33(1) of that Act) who has not subsequently been given leave under that Act to enter or remain in the United Kingdom;

(e)

has been allowed temporary admission to the United Kingdom by virtue of paragraph 21 of Schedule 2 to that Act;

(f)

has been allowed temporary admission to the United Kingdom by the Secretary of State outside any provision of that Act; or

(g)

has not had his immigration status determined by the Secretary of State;

“patient” means a person (other than a prisoner) who is regarded as receiving free in-patient treatment within the meaning of the Social Security (Hospital In-Patients) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1975(6);

''prisoner'' means a person who is detained in custody pending trial or sentence upon conviction or under a sentence imposed by a court other than a person whose detention is under the provisions of the Mental Health (Northern Ireland) Order 1986(7);

“residential accommodation” means, subject to paragraph (4), accommodation for a person whose stay in the accommodation has become other than temporary which is accommodation provided—

(a)

under Article 15 or 36 of the 1972 Order(8) other than—

(i)

such accommodation where full board is not available to the person, or

(ii)

accommodation in premises registered under Article 35 of, and Schedule 5 to, that Order (registration of homes for persons in need) where the premises are used for the rehabilitation of alcoholics or drug addicts, or

(iii)

a hostel within the meaning of regulation 20(2) (persons in board and lodging accommodation and hostels); or

(b)

under Article 7 or 8 of the 1972 Order (prevention of illness, care and after-care and care of mothers and young children) by the Department other than—

(i)

such accommodation where full board is not available to the person,

(ii)

accommodation provided under the said Article 7 which is registered under Article 35 of, and Schedule 5 to, the 1972 Order (registration of homes for persons in need) where the premises are used for the rehabilitation of alcoholics or drug addicts, or

(iii)

a hostel within the meaning of regulation 20(2) (persons in board and lodging accommodation and hostels).

(4) A person who would, but for this paragraph, be in residential accommodation within the meaning of paragraph (3) shall not be treated as being in residential accommodation if he is a person who is staying in a home for persons in need as defined in regulation 19(2) (persons in homes for persons in need and nursing homes) under the provisions referred to in sub-paragraph (b) of the definition of “residential accommodation” in paragraph (3) where—

(a) the weekly cost of such accommodation exceeds the maximum amount provided for under regulation 19 and paragraphs 6, 8, 9 and 10 of Schedule 4 (applicable amounts of persons in homes for persons in need and nursing homes) in respect of such accommodation; and

(b) the Department accepts responsibility for the making of arrangements for the provision of such accommodation for that person in the light of that person being entitled to such maximum amount as a person in a home for persons in need under and by virtue of that regulation, provided that in the case of a person over pensionable age the Department had accepted such responsibility for a period of not less than 2 years immediately before that person attained pensionable age.

(5) A claimant to whom paragraph 17 of Schedule 7 (disability premium) applies shall be entitled to income support for the period in respect of which that paragraph applies to him notwithstanding that his partner was also entitled to income support for that same period.

Reductions in applicable amounts in certain cases of actual or notional unemployment benefit disqualification

22.—(1) The weekly applicable amount of a claimant to whom paragraph (4) or (5) applies shall, subject to paragraph (2), be reduced by a sum equal to 40 per cent. of the following amount (hereinafter referred to as the ''relevant amount'')—

(a) in the case of a person to whom regulation 17 or 18 (applicable amounts or polygamous marriages) or paragraph 4, 5, 6, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14 or 15(c)(i) or (d)(i) of Schedule 7 (applicable amounts in special cases) applies—

(i) where he is a single claimant aged less than 18 or a member of a couple or a polygamous marriage where all the members, in either case, are less than 18, the amount specified in Column (2) of paragraph 1(1)(a) of Schedule 2 (applicable amounts),

(ii) where he is a single claimant aged not less than 18 but less than 25, the amount specified in Column (2) of paragraph 1(1)(b) of that Schedule,

(iii) where he is a single claimant aged not less than 25 or a member of a couple or a polygamous marriage at least one of whom is aged not less than 18, the amount specified in Column (2) of paragraph 1(1)(c) of that Schedule;

(b) in the case of a person to whom regulation 19 or 20 (persons in homes for persons in need and nursing homes or board and lodging accommodation and hostels) applies, the amount allowed for personal expenses for him specified in paragraph 12 of Schedule 4 or, as the case may be, paragraph 11(b) of Schedule 5.

(2) Where—

(a) the claimant's capital calculated in accordance with Part V (including any capital treated as his) does not exceed £200; and

(b) the claimant or, if the claimant is a member of a family, any member of the family is either pregnant or seriously ill,

his weekly applicable amount shall be reduced by a sum equal to 20 per cent. of the relevant amount in his case.

(3) A reduction under paragraph (1) or (2) shall, if it is not a multiple of 5p, be rounded to the nearest such multiple or, if it is a multiple of 2.5p but not of 5p, to the next lower multiple of 5p.

(4) This paragraph applies to a claimant—

(a) whose weekly applicable amount is calculated otherwise than in accordance with regulation 21 (special cases) and paragraph 1, 2, 3, 8(b), 13, 14 or 16 of Schedule 7;

(b) whose right to income support is, under Article 21(3)(d)(i) of the Order (conditions of entitlement to income support), subject to the condition of availability for employment; and

(c) who—

(i) is disqualified for receiving unemployment benefit under section 20(1) of the principal Act(9) (disqualifications etc.),

(ii) has made a claim for unemployment benefit which has not been determined by an adjudication officer and in respect of which, in the opinion of an adjudication officer, a question as to disqualification under that section arises, or

(iii) has not made a claim for unemployment benefit or has had such a claim disallowed other than by reason of section 20(1) and, in either case, would be so disqualified if he were to make such a claim or it had not been so disallowed.

(5) This paragraph applies to a claimant who is not required to be available for employment by virtue of regulation 8(2) (persons not required to be available for employment) or a person to whom regulation 11(2) (exemption from requirement to register for employment) applies.

(6) This regulation shall apply—

(a) in a case to which head (i) of paragraph (4)(c) applies, for the period of the disqualification;

(b) in a case to which head (ii) of paragraph (4)(c) applies, for a period of 13 weeks except that where, on subsequent determination of the claim for unemployment benefit—

(i) disqualification is not imposed, any reduction imposed under paragraph (1) or (2), as the case may be, shall be withdrawn,

(ii) disqualification is imposed but for a period of less than 13 weeks, the period of such reduction shall be adjusted to correspond with the period of disqualification;

(c) in a case to which head (iii) of paragraph (4)(c) applies, for the period for which the claimant would be disqualified if he were to make a claim for unemployment benefit or if such a claim had not been disallowed for other reasons;

(d) in a case to which paragraph (5) applies, for so long as that paragraph continues so to apply.

(1)

1971 c. 32 (N.I.); Part I was amended by Schedules 16 and 18 to the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1972, Article 16 of the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1978 (S.I. 1978/1907 (N.I. 26)), Schedules 7 and 8 to the Nurses, Midwives and Health Visitors Act 1979 (c. 36), Articles 3 and 4 of the Nursing Homes and Nursing Agencies (Northern Ireland) Order 1985 (S.I. 1985/1775 (N.I. 19)) and Part II of Schedule 5 to the Mental Health (Northern Ireland) Order 1986 (S.I. 1986/595 (N.I. 4))

(2)

International standard book number ISBN 0 337 07369 4

(3)

S.I. 1981/156 (N.I. 3)

(4)

Section 33(1) as amended by the British Nationality Act 1981 (c. 61), section 39 and Schedule 4

(5)

Cmnd. 9512

(6)

S.R. 1975 No. 109; the relevant amending regulations are S.R. 1987 No. 391

(7)

S.I. 1986/595 (N.I. 4)

(8)

Article 15 was extended by Article 11(1) of the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1978 (S.I. 1978/1907 (N.I. 26)) and sections 1 and 2 of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons (Northern Ireland) Act 1978 (c. 53) and Article 36 was amended by Article 11(2) of the said Order

(9)

Subsection (1) was amended by Article 44(2)(a) of the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Order 1986 and subsection (1A) was inserted by Article 44(3)(a) of that Order