The Income Support (General) Regulations 1987

CHAPTER VIIIstudents

Interpretation

61.  In this Chapter, unless the context otherwise requires—

• “a course of advanced education” means—

  (a)

  a full-time course leading to a postgraduate degree or comparable qualification, a first degree or comparable qualification, a diploma of higher education, a higher national diploma, a higher national diploma of the Business & Technician Education Council or the Scottish Vocational Education Council or a teaching qualification; or

  (b)

  any other full-time course which is a course of a standard above ordinary national diploma, a national diploma of the Business & Technician Education Council or the Scottish Vocational Education Council, a general certificate of education (advanced level) a Scottish certificate of education (higher grade) or a Scottish certificate of sixth year studies;

• “contribution” means any contribution in respect of the income of any other person which a Minister of the Crown or an education authority takes into account in assessing the amount of the student’s grant and by which that amount is, as a consequence, reduced;

• “covenant income” means the income net of tax at the basic rate payable to a student under a Deed of Covenant by a person whose income is, or is likely to be, taken into account in assessing the student’s grant or award;

• “education authority” means a government department, a local education authority as defined in section 114(1) of the Education Act 1944(1) (interpretation), an education authority as defined in section 135(1) of the Education (Scotland) Act(2) (interpretation), an education and library board established under Article 3 of the Education and Libraries (Northern Ireland) Order 1986(3), any body which is a research council for the purposes of the Science and Technology Act 1965(4) or any analogous government department, authority, board or body, of the Channel Islands, Isle of Man or any other country outside Great Britain.

• “grant” means any kind of educational grant or award and includes any scholarship, studentship, exhibition, allowance or bursary;

• “grant income” means—

  (a)

  any income by way of a grant;

  (b)

  in the case of a student other than one to whom sub-paragraph (c) refers, any contribution which has been assessed whether or not it has been paid;

  (c)

  in the case of a student to whom paragraph 1, 2 or 7 of Schedule 1 applies (lone parent or disabled student), any contribution which has been assessed and which has been paid;

  and any such contribution which is paid by way of a covenant shall be treated as part of the student’s grant income.

• “period of study” means—

  (a)

  in the case of a course of study for one year or less, the period beginning with the start of the course to the end;

  (b)

  in the case of a course of study for more than one year, in the first or, as the case may be, any subsequent year of the course, the period beginning with the start of the course or, as the case may be, that year’s start and ending with either—

  (i)

  the day before the start of the next year of the course in a case where the student’s grant is assessed at a rate appropriate to his studying throughout the year, or, if he does not have a grant, where it would have been assessed at such a rate had he had one; or

  (ii)

  in any other case the day before the start of the normal summer vacation appropriate to his course;

• “periods of experience” has the meaning prescribed in paragraph 1(1) of Schedule 5 to the Education (Mandatory Awards) Regulations 1987(5);

• “sandwich course” has the meaning prescribed in paragraph 1(1) of Schedule 5 to the Education (Mandatory Awards) Regulations 1987;

• “standard maintenance grant” means—

  (a)

  except where paragraph (b) applies, in the case of a student attending a course of study at the University of London or an establishment within the area comprising the City of London and the Metropolitan Police District, the amount specified for the time being in paragraph 2(2)(a) of Schedule 2 to the Education (Mandatory Awards) Regulations 1987 for such a student;

  (b)

  in the case of a student residing at his parents' home the amount specified in paragraph 3(2) thereof;

  (c)

  in any other case, the amount specified in paragraph 2(2) other than in sub-paragraph (a) or (b) thereof;

• “student” means a person aged less than 19 who is attending a full-time course of advanced education or, as the case may be, a person aged 19 or over but under pensionable age who is attending a full-time course of study at an educational establishment; and for the purposes of this definition—

  (a)

  a person who has started on such a course shall be treated as attending it throughout any period of term or vacation within it, until the end of the course or such earlier date as he abandons it or is dismissed from it;

  (b)

  a person on a sandwich course shall be treated as attending a full-time course of advanced education or, as the case may be, of study;

• “year” in relation to a course, means the period of 12 months beginning on 1st January, 1st April or 1st September according to whether the academic year of the course in question begins in the spring, the summer or the autumn respectively.

Calculation of grant income

62.—(1) The amount of a student’s grant income to be taken into account shall, subject to paragraph (2), be the whole of his grant income.

(2) There shall be disregarded from the amount of a student’s grant income any payment—

(a)intended to meet tuition fees or examination fees;

(b)intended to meet the cost of special equipment for a student on a course which began before 1st September 1986 in architecture, art and design, home economics, landscape architecture, medicine, music, ophthalmic optics, orthoptics, physical education, physiotherapy, radiography, occupational therapy, dental hygiene, dental therapy, remedial gymnastics, town and country planning and veterinary science or medicine;

(c)intended to meet additional expenditure incurred by a disabled student in respect of his attendance on a course;

(d)intended to meet additional expenditure connected with term time residential study away from the student’s educational establishment;

(e)on account of the student maintaining a home at a place other than that at which he resides while attending his course but only to the extent that his rent or rates is not met by housing benefit;

(f)on account of any other person but only if that person is residing outside of the United Kingdom and there is no applicable amount in respect of him;

(g)intended to meet the cost of books and equipment (other than special equipment) or if not so intended an amount equal to £210 towards such costs;

(h)intended to meet travel expenses incurred as a result of his attendance on the course.

(3) A student’s grant income shall be apportioned—

(a)subject to paragraph (4), in a case where it is attributable to the period of study, equally between the weeks in that period;

(b)in any other case, equally between the weeks in the period in respect of which it is payable.

(4) In the case of a student on a sandwich course, any periods of experience within the period of study shall be excluded and the student’s grant income shall be apportioned equally between the remaining weeks in that period.

Calculation of covenant income where a contribution is assessed

63.—(1) Where a student is in receipt of income by way of a grant during a period of study and a contribution has been assessed, the amount of his covenant income to be taken into account for that period and any summer vacation immediately following shall be the whole amount of his covenant income less, subject to paragraph (3), the amount of the contribution.

(2) The weekly amount of the student’s covenant income shall be determined—

(a)by dividing the amount of income which falls to be taken into account under paragraph (1) by 52 or, if there are 53 benefit weeks (including part weeks) in the year, 53; and

(b)by disregarding from the resulting amount, £5.

(3) For the purposes of paragraph (1), the contribution shall be treated as increased by the amount, if any, by which the amount excluded under regulation 62(2)(h) (calculation of grant income) falls short of the amount included in the standard maintenance grant to meet travel expenses.

Covenant income where no grant income or no contribution is assessed

64.—(1) Where a student is not in receipt of income by way of a grant the amount of his covenant income shall be calculated as follows—

(a)any sums intended for any expenditure specified in regulation 62(2)(a) to (f), (calculation of grant income) necessary as a result of his attendance on the course, shall be disregarded;

(b)any covenant income, up to the amount of the standard maintenance grant, which is not so disregarded, shall be apportioned equally between the weeks of the period of study and there shall be disregarded from the covenant income to be so apportioned the amount which would have been disregarded under regulation 62(2)(g) and (h) (calculation of grant income) had the student been in receipt of the standard maintenance grant;

(c)the balance, if any, shall be divided by 52 or, if there are 53 benefit weeks (including part weeks) in the year, 53 and treated as weekly income of which £5 shall be disregarded.

(2) Where a student is in receipt of income by way of a grant and no contribution has been assessed, the amount of his covenant income shall be calculated in accordance with sub-paragraphs (a) to (c) of paragraph (1), except that—

(a)the value of the standard maintenance grant shall be abated by the amount of his grant income less an amount equal to the amount of any sums disregarded under regulation 62(2)(a) to (f); and

(b)the amount to be disregarded under paragraph (1)(b) shall be abated by an amount equal to the amount of any sums disregarded under regulation 62(2)(g) and (h).

Relationship with amounts to be disregarded under Schedule 9

65.  No part of a student’s covenant income or grant income shall be disregarded under paragraph 15 of Schedule 9 (charitable and voluntary payments) and any other income shall only be disregarded thereunder if, and to the extent that, the amount disregarded under regulation 63(2)(b) (calculation of covenant income where a contribution is assessed) or, as the case may be, 64(1)(c) (covenant income where no grant income or no contribution is assessed) is less than £5.

Other amounts to be disregarded

66.—(1) For the purposes of ascertaining income other than grant income and covenant income, any amounts intended for any expenditure specified in regulation 62(2) (calculation of grant income) necessary as a result of his attendance on the course shall be disregarded but only if, and to the extent that, the necessary expenditure exceeds or is likely to exceed the amount of the sums disregarded under regulation 62(2), 63(3) and 64(1)(a) or (b) (calculation of grant income and covenant income) on like expenditure.

(2) Where a claim is made in respect of any period in the normal summer vacation and any income is payable under a Deed of Covenant which commences or takes effect after the first day of that vacation, that income shall be disregarded.

Disregard of contribution

67.  Where the claimant or his partner is a student and the income of one has been taken into account for the purpose of assessing a contribution to the student’s grant, an amount equal to the contribution shall be disregarded for the purpose of calculating the income of the one liable to make that contribution.

Income treated as capital

68.  Any amount by way of a refund of tax deducted from a student’s income shall be treated as capital.

Disregard of changes occurring during summer vacation

69.  In calculating a student’s income an adjudication officer shall disregard any change in the standard maintenance grant occurring in the recognised summer vacation appropriate to the student’s course, if that vacation does not form part of his period of study, from the date on which the change occurred up to the end of that vacation.