Departments Directions Social Fund Guide

Part 8 - The Directions issued by the Department

Budgeting Loans

Direction 8 - Budgeting Loan eligibility
Direction 9 - Treatment of capital
Direction 10 - Budgeting Loan, minimum and maximum award
Direction 11- Budgeting Loans, ability to repay

Direction 8 - Budgeting Loan eligibility

8.(1) A social fund payment under direction 2 shall only be awarded to an applicant if at the date of the determination of the application -

(a) he is in receipt of:

(i) a qualifying benefit, which, for the purposes of this direction means either

(aa) income support; or

(bb) income-based jobseeker’s allowance; or

(cc) state pension credit; or

(dd) income-related employment and support allowance; or

(ii) payments on account of a qualifying benefit such as may be made by the Department under regulation 2 of the Social Security (Payments on account, Overpayments and Recovery) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1988;

(b) neither he nor his partner is disentitled from receiving a jobseeker's allowance pursuant to Article 16 of the Jobseekers (Northern Ireland) Order 1995 (trade disputes) nor would they be so disentitled if otherwise entitled to that allowance, and

(c) for each week of the 26 weeks immediately preceding the date of determination of the application, he has been in receipt of a qualifying benefit or of a payment on account of such a benefit or the partner of a person in receipt of a qualifying benefit or of a payment on account of such a benefit.

(2) For the purposes of paragraph (1)(c), where the applicant or, as the case may be, his partner, has been in receipt of a qualifying benefit, or of payments on account of such a benefit, for two or more periods, the last of which includes the date of the determination of the application and those periods are separated by one or more intervals of 28 days or less during which neither the applicant nor his partner was in receipt of a qualifying benefit, or of payments on account of such a benefit, those intervals shall be treated as part of a continuous period of receipt of a qualifying benefit or of payments on account of such a benefit.

(3) For the purposes of paragraphs (1)(c) and (2), where an applicant or, as the case may be, his partner, has been in receipt of income-based jobseeker's allowance or income-related employment and support allowance the period of three waiting days prescribed by regulation 46(2) of the Jobseeker's Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996 or regulation 144(1) of the Employment and Support Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008 as approprriate, shall not be treated as a period of receipt of a qualifying benefit.

Direction 9 - Treatment of capital

9 (1) Where-

(a) the applicant, or his partner, is aged 61 or over and the total capital resources of the applicant and his partner exceed £2000; or

(b) the applicant is, or if he has a partner both are, aged under 61 and the total capital resources of the applicant and his partner exceed £1000, any budgeting loan which would but for this direction be awarded shall be awarded only if and to the extent that, the amount of the award is more than the excess.

(2) Subject to paragraph (3) in this direction, `total capital resources' shall be calculated in accordance with -

(a) where the applicant or his partner is in receipt of income support, Chapter VI (capital) of Part V of, and Schedule 10 to, the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987;

(b) where the applicant or his partner is in receipt of income-based jobseeker's allowance, Chapter VI (capital) of Part VIII of, and Schedule 7 to, the Jobseeker's Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996.

(c) where the applicant or his partner is in receipt of state pension credit, Part III (income) and Schedule 5 (income from capital)to the State Pension Credit Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2003.

(d) where the applicant or his partner is in receipt of income-related employment and support allowance, Part 10, Chapters 1 and 7 and Schedule 9 to Employment and Support Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008

(3) For the purposes of paragraph (2), the following shall be disregarded in calculating the total capital resources:

(a) any payments made from the Family Fund to the applicant, his partner or children; and

(b) any integration loan granted to the applicant or his partner under the Integration Loans for Refugees and Others Regulations 2007 (S.I. 2007 No1598) as they have effect at 11 June 2007.