
1 

(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Income-Related Benefits and Jobseeker’s Allowance (Personal Allowances for Children and Young Persons) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996 and both this regulation and regulation 10 shall come into operation on 1st April 1997.
(2) In so far as these Regulations amend provisions relating to income support and jobseeker’s allowance, they shall come into operation on 7th April 1997.
(3) In so far as these Regulations amend provisions relating to housing benefit—
(a) in any case where rent is payable at intervals of one month or any other interval which is not a week or a multiple thereof, they shall come into operation on 1st April 1997;
(b) in any other case, they shall come into operation on 7th April 1997.
(4) In so far as these Regulations amend provisions relating to family credit or disability working allowance, they shall come into operation on 7th October 1997 and, in relation to any particular claimant for either of those benefits, these Regulations shall have effect where a claimant has an award of family credit or disability working allowance which is current on 7th October 1997, on the day following the last day of that award.
(5) In these Regulations—
 “the Income Support Regulations” means the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987;
 “the Housing Benefit Regulations” means the Housing Benefit (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987;
 “the Family Credit Regulations” means the Family Credit (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987;
 “the Disability Working Allowance Regulations” means the Disability Working Allowance (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1992;
 “the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations” means the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996.
(6) The Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954 shall apply to these Regulations as it applies to a Measure of the Northern Ireland Assembly.
2 

(1) Each of the provisions specified in paragraph (7) (which specify the personal allowances applied in respect of children and young persons when calculating applicable amounts) shall be amended in accordance with paragraphs (2) to (6).
(2) After “2.” there shall be inserted “—(1)”.
(3) After “shall” there shall be inserted “, for the relevant period specified in column (1),”.
(4) For column (1) of the table there shall be substituted the following—“
 Person in respect of the period—
(a) beginning on, and including, that person’s date of birth and ending on the day preceding the first Monday in September following that person’s eleventh birthday;
(b) beginning on, and including, the first Monday in September following that person’s eleventh birthday and ending on the day preceding the first Monday in September following that person’s sixteenth birthday;
(c) beginning on, and including, the first Monday in September following that person’s sixteenth birthday and ending on the day preceding that person’s nineteenth birthday.”.
(5) In column (2) of the table the entry (d) shall be omitted.
(6) After the table there shall be added the following sub-paragraph—“
(2) In column (1) of the table in paragraph (1) “the first Monday in September” means the Monday which first occurs in the month of September in any year.”.
(7) The provisions specified for the purposes of paragraph (1) are—
(a) paragraph 2 of Schedule 2 to the Income Support Regulations;
(b) paragraph 2 of Schedule 1 to the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations;
(c) paragraph 2 of Schedule 2 to the Housing Benefit Regulations.
3 

(1) Regulation 21A of the Housing Benefit Regulations (treatment of child care charges) shall be amended in accordance with paragraphs (2) and (3).
(2) In paragraph (2) in the definition of “relevant child care charges” for “who is under the age of 11 years” there shall be substituted “in respect of the period beginning on, and including, that child’s date of birth and ending on the day preceding the first Monday in September following that child’s eleventh birthday”.
(3) After paragraph (2) there shall be inserted the following paragraph—“
(2A) In paragraph (2) “the first Monday in September” means the Monday which first occurs in the month of September in any year.”.
4 

(1) Regulation 13A of the Family Credit Regulations (treatment of child care charges) shall be amended in accordance with paragraphs (2) and (3).
(2) In paragraph (2) in the definition of “relevant child care charges” for “who is under the age of 11 years” there shall be substituted “in respect of the period beginning on, and including, that child’s date of birth and ending on the day preceding the first Tuesday in September following that child’s eleventh birthday”.
(3) For paragraph (2A) there shall be substituted the following paragraph—“
(2A) In paragraph (2)—
(a) the age of a child referred to in that paragraph shall be determined by reference to the age of the child at the date on which the period under section 127(3) of the Contributions and Benefits Act (period of award) begins;
(b) “the first Tuesday in September” means the Tuesday which first occurs in the month of September in any year.”.
5 

(1) Regulation 46 of the Family Credit Regulations (determination of appropriate maximum family credit) shall be amended in accordance with paragraphs (2) to (4).
(2) In paragraph (1)(b)—
(a) for “against whichever description in either paragraph 2 or 3 of column (1) fits” there shall be substituted “in respect of the period specified in either paragraph 2 or 3 of column (1) as appropriate to”;
(b) after “concerned” there shall be inserted “and in those paragraphs, “the first Tuesday in September” means the Tuesday which first occurs in the month of September in any year”.
(3) In paragraph (2) for the words from “equals—” to the end of the paragraph there shall be substituted “equals the credit specified in column (2) of Schedule 4 against paragraph 3 in column (1).”.
(4) In paragraph (7)—
(a) for “age” in the first place where it occurs there shall be substituted “period during which that amount is appropriate in respect”;
(b) for “age of the child or young person at” there shall be substituted “relevant period which includes”.
6 
For paragraphs 2 and 3 of column (1) in Schedule 4 to the Family Credit Regulations (maximum amounts for children and young persons) there shall be substituted the following paragraphs—“
2 
Person in respect of the period—
(a) beginning on, and including, that person’s date of birth and ending on the day preceding the first Tuesday in September following that person’s eleventh birthday;
(b) beginning on, and including, the first Tuesday in September following that person’s eleventh birthday and ending on the day preceding the first Tuesday in September following that person’s sixteenth birthday.
3 
Person in respect of the period beginning on, and including, the first Tuesday in September following that person’s sixteenth birthday and ending on the day preceding that person’s nineteenth birthday.”.
7 

(1) Regulation 15A of the Disability Working Allowance Regulations (treatment of child care charges) shall be amended in accordance with paragraphs (2) and (3).
(2) In paragraph (2) in the definition of “relevant child care charges” for “who is under the age of 11 years” there shall be substituted “in respect of the period beginning on, and including, that child’s date of birth and ending on the day preceding the first Tuesday in September following that child’s eleventh birthday”.
(3) For paragraph (2A) there shall be substituted the following paragraph—“
(2A) In paragraph (2)—
(a) the age of a child referred to in that paragraph shall be determined by reference to the age of the child at the date on which the period under section 128(6) of the Contributions and Benefits Act (period of award) begins;
(b) “the first Tuesday in September” means the Tuesday which first occurs in the month of September in any year.”.
8 

(1) Regulation 51 of the Disability Working Allowance Regulations (determination of appropriate maximum disability working allowance) shall be amended in accordance with paragraphs (2) to (4).
(2) In paragraph (1)(c)—
(a) for “against whichever description in paragraph 3 or 4 of column (1) fits” there shall be substituted “in respect of the period specified in either paragraph 3 or 4 of column (1) as appropriate to”;
(b) after “concerned” there shall be inserted “and in those paragraphs “the first Tuesday in September” means the Tuesday which first occurs in the month of September in any year”.
(3) In paragraph (2) for the words from “equals—” to the end of the paragraph there shall be substituted “equals the allowance specified in column (2) of Schedule 5 against paragraph 4 in column (1).”.
(4) In paragraph (7)—
(a) for “age” in the first place where it occurs there shall be substituted “period during which that amount is appropriate in respect”;
(b) for “age of the child or young person at” there shall be substituted “relevant period which includes”.
9 
For paragraphs 3 and 4 in column (1) in Schedule 5 to the Disability Working Allowance Regulations (maximum amounts for children and young persons) there shall be substituted the following paragraphs—“
3 
Person in respect of the period—
(a) beginning on, and including, that person’s date of birth and ending on the day preceding the first Tuesday in September following that person’s eleventh birthday;
(b) beginning on, and including, the first Tuesday in September following that person’s eleventh birthday and ending on the day preceding the first Tuesday in September following that person’s sixteenth birthday.
4 
Person in respect of the period beginning on, and including, the first Tuesday in September following that person’s sixteenth birthday and ending on the day preceding that person’s nineteenth birthday.”.
10 

(1) Where, in relation to a claim for income support, jobseeker’s allowance or housing benefit, a claimant’s weekly applicable amount includes a personal allowance in respect of one or more children or young persons who are, as at the day before the appropriate date these Regulations come into operation for the purpose of those benefits in accordance with regulation 1 (referred to in this regulation as “the appropriate date”), aged 11, 16 or 18, the provisions specified in regulation 2(7) shall have effect, for the period specified in paragraph (2), as if regulation 2 had not been made.
(2) The period specified for the purposes of paragraph (1) shall be, in relation to each particular child or young person referred to in that paragraph, the period beginning on, and including, the appropriate date and ending—
(a) where that child or young person is aged 11 or 16 as at the day before the appropriate date, on 31st August 1997;
(b) where that young person is aged 18 as at the day before the appropriate date, on the day preceding the day that young person ceases to be a person of a prescribed description for the purposes of regulation 14 of the Income Support Regulations, regulation 76 of the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations or regulation 13 of the Housing Benefit Regulations.
(3) Where, in any particular case, the appropriate maximum family credit or, as the case may be, the appropriate maximum disability working allowance includes a credit or allowance in respect of one or more children or young persons who are, as at 6th October 1997, aged 11, 16 or 18, the Family Credit Regulations or, as the case may be, the Disability Working Allowance Regulations shall have effect, for the period specified in paragraph (4), as if regulations 5 and 6 or, as the case may be, 8 and 9 had not been made.
(4) The period specified for the purposes of paragraph (3) shall be, in relation to each particular child or young person referred to in that paragraph, the period beginning on, and including, 7th October 1997 and ending—
(a) where that child or young person is aged 11 or 16 as at 6th October 1997, on 31st August 1998;
(b) where that young person is aged 18 as at 6th October 1997, on the day preceding the day that young person ceases to be a person of a prescribed description for the purposes of regulation 6 of the Family Credit Regulations or, as the case may be, regulation 8 of the Disability Working Allowance Regulations.
Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department of Health and Social Services for Northern Ireland on 8th October 1996.
John O'Neill
Assistant Secretary
The Department of the Environment for Northern Ireland hereby consents to regulations 2(2) to (6) and (7)(c), 3 and 10(1) and (2) of the foregoing Regulations.Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department of the Environment for Northern Ireland on 8th October 1996.
R. E. Aiken
Assistant Secretary
