The Council Tax Reduction Schemes and Prescribed Requirements (Wales) Regulations 2012

Treatment of child care charges

21.—(1) This paragraph applies where an applicant (within the meaning of this paragraph) is incurring relevant child care charges and—

(a) is a lone parent and is engaged in remunerative work;

(b) is a member of a couple both of whom are engaged in remunerative work; or

(c) is a member of a couple where one member is engaged in remunerative work and the other—

(i) is incapacitated;

(ii) is an in-patient in hospital; or

(iii) is in prison (whether serving a custodial sentence or remanded in custody awaiting trial or sentence).

(2) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (1) and subject to sub-paragraph (4), a person to whom sub-paragraph (3) applies must be treated as engaged in remunerative work for a period not exceeding 28 weeks during which the person—

(a) is paid statutory sick pay;

(b) is paid short-term incapacity benefit at the lower rate under sections 30A to 30E of the SSCBA;

(c) is paid an employment and support allowance;

(d) is paid income support on the grounds of incapacity for work under regulation 4ZA of, and paragraph 7 or 14 of Schedule 1B to, the Income Support (General) Regulations 1987; or

(e) is credited with earnings on the grounds of incapacity for work or limited capability for work under regulation 8B of the Social Security (Credits) Regulations 1975.

(3) This sub-paragraph applies to a person who was engaged in remunerative work immediately before—

(a) the first day of the period in respect of which the person was first paid statutory sick pay, short-term incapacity benefit, an employment and support allowance or income support on the grounds of incapacity for work; or

(b) the first day of the period in respect of which earnings are credited,

as the case may be.

(4) In a case to which sub-paragraph (2)(d) or (e) applies, the period of 28 weeks begins on the day on which the person is first paid income support or on the first day of the period in respect of which earnings are credited, as the case may be.

(5) Relevant child care charges are those charges for care to which sub-paragraphs (6) and (7) apply, and are to be calculated on a weekly basis in accordance with sub-paragraph (10).

(6) The charges are paid by the applicant for care which is provided—

(a) in the case of any child of the applicant’s family who is not disabled, in respect of the period beginning on that child’s date of birth and ending on the day preceding the first Monday in September following that child’s fifteenth birthday; or

(b) in the case of any child of the applicant’s family who is disabled, in respect of the period beginning on that person’s date of birth and ending on the day preceding the first Monday in September following that person’s sixteenth birthday.

(7) The charges are paid for care which is provided by one or more of the care providers listed in sub-paragraph (8) and are not paid—

(a) in respect of the child’s compulsory education;

(b) by an applicant to a partner or by a partner to an applicant in respect of any child for whom either or any of them is responsible in accordance with regulation 7 (circumstances in which a person is treated as responsible or not responsible for another); or

(c) in respect of care provided by a relative of the child wholly or mainly in the child’s home.

(8) The care to which sub-paragraph (7) refers may be provided—

(a) out of school hours, by a school on school premises or by a local authority—

(i) for children who are not disabled in respect of the period beginning on their eighth birthday and ending on the day preceding the first Monday in September following their fifteenth birthday; or

(ii) for children who are disabled in respect of the period beginning on their eighth birthday and ending on the day preceding the first Monday in September following their sixteenth birthday; or

(b) by a child care provider approved in accordance with the Tax Credit (New Category of Child Care Provider) Regulations 1999(1); or

(c) by persons registered under Part 2 of the Children and Families (Wales) Measure 2010(2); or

(d) by a person who is excepted from registration under Part 2 of the Children and Families (Wales) Measure 2010 because the child care that person provides is in a school or establishment referred to in article 11, 12 or 14 of the Child Minding and Day Care Exceptions (Wales) Order 2010(3); or

(e) by—

(i) persons registered under section 59(1) of the Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010(4); or

(ii) local authorities registered under section 83(1) of that Act,

where the care provided is child minding or day care of children within the meaning of that Act; or

(f) by a person prescribed in regulations made pursuant to section 12(4) of the Tax Credits Act 2002; or

(g) by a person who is registered under Chapter 2 or 3 of Part 3 of the Childcare Act 2006; or

(h) by any of the schools mentioned in section 34(2) of the Childcare Act 2006 in circumstances where the requirement to register under Chapter 2 of Part 3 of that Act does not apply by virtue of section 34(2) of that Act; or

(i) by any of the schools mentioned in section 53(2) of the Childcare Act 2006 in circumstances where the requirement to register under Chapter 3 of Part 3 of that Act does not apply by virtue of section 53(2) of that Act; or

(j) by any of the establishments mentioned in section 18(5) of the Childcare Act 2006 in circumstances where the care is not included in the meaning of “childcare” for the purposes of Part 1 and Part 3 of that Act by virtue of that subsection; or

(k) by a foster parent or kinship carer under the Fostering Services (England) Regulations 2011(5), the Fostering Services (Wales) Regulations 2003(6) or the Looked After Children (Scotland) Regulations 2009(7) in relation to a child other than one whom the foster parent is fostering or kinship carer is looking after; or

(l) by a domiciliary care worker under the Domiciliary Care Agencies (Wales) Regulations 2004(8); or

(m) by a person who is not a relative of the child wholly or mainly in the child’s home.

(9) In sub-paragraphs (6) and (8)(a), “the first Monday in September” means the Monday which first occurs in the month of September in any year.

(10) Relevant child care charges must be estimated over such period, not exceeding a year, as is appropriate in order that the average weekly charge may be estimated accurately having regard to information as to the amount of that charge provided by the child minder or person providing the care.

(11) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (1)(c) the other member of a couple is incapacitated where—

(a) the applicant’s applicable amount includes a disability premium on account of the other member’s incapacity or the support component or the work-related activity component on account of the other member’s having limited capability for work;

(b) the applicant ’s applicable amount would include a disability premium on account of the other member’s incapacity but for that other member being treated as capable of work by virtue of a determination made in accordance with regulations made under section 171E of the SSCBA;

(c) the applicant’s applicable amount would include the support component or the work-related activity component on account of the other member having limited capability for work but for that other member being treated as not having limited capability for work by virtue of a determination made in accordance with the Employment and Support Allowance Regulations 2008;

(d) the applicant is, or is treated as, incapable of work and has been so incapable, or has been so treated as incapable, of work in accordance with the provisions of, and regulations made under, Part 12A of the SSCBA (incapacity for work) for a continuous period of not less than 196 days; and for this purpose any two or more separate periods separated by a break of not more than 56 days must be treated as one continuous period;

(e) the applicant has, or is treated as having, limited capability for work and has had, or been treated as having, limited capability for work in accordance with the Employment and Support Allowance Regulations 2008 for a continuous period of not less than 196 days and for this purpose any two or more separate periods separated by a break of not more than 84 days must be treated as one continuous period;

(f) there is payable in respect of the other member one or more of the following pensions or allowances—

(i) long-term incapacity benefit or short-term incapacity benefit at the higher rate under Schedule 4 to the SSCBA;

(ii) attendance allowance under section 64 of the SSCBA;

(iii) severe disablement allowance under section 68 of the SSCBA;

(iv) disability living allowance under section 71 of the SSCBA;

(v) personal independence payment under Part 4 of the Welfare Reform Act 2012;

(vi) an AFIP;

(vii) increase of disablement pension under section 104 of the SSCBA;

(viii) a pension increase paid as part of a war disablement pension or under an industrial injuries scheme which is analogous to an allowance or increase of disablement pension under sub-paragraph (ii), (iv), (v) or (vii) above;

(ix) main phase employment and support allowance;

(g) a pension or allowance to which sub-paragraph (vi) or (vii) of paragraph (f) refers was payable on account of the other member’s incapacity but has ceased to be payable in consequence of that other member becoming a patient, which in this paragraph means a person (other than a person who is serving a sentence of imprisonment or detention in a youth custody institution) who is regarded as receiving free in-patient treatment within the meaning of regulation 2(4) and (5) of the Social Security (Hospital In-Patients) Regulations 2005;

(h) an attendance allowance under section 64 of the SSCBA or disability living allowance under section 71 of that Act would be payable to that person but for—

(i) a suspension of benefit in accordance with regulations under section 113(2) of the SSCBA; or

(ii) an abatement as a consequence of hospitalisation;

(i) the daily living component of personal independence payment would be payable to that person but for a suspension of benefit in accordance with regulations under section 86 of the Welfare Reform Act 2012 (hospital in-patients);

(j) an AFIP would be payable to that person but for any suspension of payment in accordance with any terms of the armed and reserve forces compensation scheme which allow for a suspension because a person is undergoing medical treatment in a hospital or similar institution;

(k) paragraph (f), (g), (h) or (i) would apply to the other member if the legislative provisions referred to in those paragraphs were provisions under any corresponding enactment having effect in Northern Ireland; or

(l) the other member has an invalid carriage or other vehicle provided to the other member by the Secretary of State under paragraph 9 of Schedule 1 to the National Health Service Act 2006 or under section 46 of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978, or provided by the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety in Northern Ireland under Article 30(1) of the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1972, or provided by the Welsh Ministers under section 5 and Schedule 1 of the National Health Service (Wales) Act 2006.

(12) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (11), once sub-paragraph (11)(d) applies to the applicant, if the applicant then ceases, for a period of 56 days or less, to be incapable, or to be treated as incapable, of work, that sub-paragraph is, on the applicant again becoming so incapable, or so treated as incapable, of work at the end of that period, to immediately thereafter apply to the applicant for so long as the applicant remains incapable, or is treated as remaining incapable, of work.

(13) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (11), once sub-paragraph (11)(e) applies to the applicant, if the applicant then ceases, for a period of 84 days or less, to have, or to be treated as having, limited capability for work, that paragraph is, on the applicant again having, or being treated as having limited capability for work at the end of that period, immediately thereafter to apply to the applicant for so long as the applicant has, or is treated as having, limited capability for work..

(14) For the purposes of sub-paragraphs (6) and (8)(a), a person is disabled if that person is a person—

(a) to whom an attendance allowance or the care component of disability allowance is payable or would be payable but for—

(i) a suspension of benefit in accordance with regulations under section 113(2) of the SSCBA; or

(ii) an abatement as a consequence of hospitalisation;

(b) to whom the daily living component of personal independence payment is payable or would be payable but for a suspension of benefit in accordance with regulations under section 86 of the Welfare Reform Act 2012 (hospital in-patients);

(c) who is registered as blind in a register compiled under section 29 of the National Assistance Act 1948 (welfare services) or, in Scotland, has been certified as blind and in consequence that person is registered as blind in a register maintained by or on behalf of a council constituted under section 2 of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1994; or

(d) who ceased to be registered as blind in such a register within the period beginning 28 weeks before the first Monday in September following that person’s fifteenth birthday and ending on the day preceding that person’s sixteenth birthday.

(15) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (1) a person on maternity leave, paternity leave or adoption leave is to be treated as if engaged in remunerative work for the period specified in sub-paragraph (16) (“the relevant period”) provided that—

(a) in the week before the period of maternity leave, paternity leave or adoption leave began the person was in remunerative work;

(b) the person is incurring relevant child care charges within the meaning of sub-paragraph (5); and

(c) the woman is entitled to either statutory maternity pay under section 164 of the SSCBA, ordinary statutory paternity pay by virtue of section 171ZA or 171ZB of that Act, additional statutory paternity pay by virtue of section 171ZEA or 171ZEB of that Act, statutory adoption pay by of section 171ZL of that Act, maternity allowance under section 35 of that Act or qualifying support.

(16) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (15) the relevant period begins on the day on which the person’s maternity, paternity leave or adoption leave commences and ends on—

(a) the date that leave ends;

(b) if no child care element of working tax credit is in payment on the date that entitlement to maternity allowance, qualifying support (if relevant), statutory maternity pay, ordinary or additional statutory paternity pay or statutory adoption pay ends, the date that entitlement ends; or

(c) if a child care element of working tax credit is in payment on the date that entitlement to maternity allowance or qualifying support, statutory maternity pay, ordinary or additional statutory paternity pay or statutory adoption pay ends, the date that entitlement to that award of the child care element of the working tax credit ends;

whichever occurs first.

(17) In sub-paragraphs (15) and (16)—

(a) “qualifying support” means income support to which that person is entitled by virtue of paragraph 14B of Schedule 1B to the Income Support (General) Regulations 1987; and

(b) “child care element” of working tax credit means the element of working tax credit prescribed under section 12 of the Tax Credits Act 2002 (child care element).

(18) In this paragraph “applicant” does not include an applicant—

(a) who has, or

(b) who (jointly with a partner) has,

an award of universal credit.

(1)

S.I. 1999/3110.

(2)

2010 nawm 1.

(3)

2010/2839 (W.233)

(4)

2010 asp 8.

(5)

S.I. 2011/581.

(6)

S.I. 2003/237 (W.35).

(7)

S.I. 2009/210.

(8)

S.I. 2004/219 (W.23).