Departments Directions Social Fund GuidePart 8 - The Directions issued by the Department
Budgeting loan prioritisation and awards
Direction 50 – Personal circumstances of applicant50.(1)In determining whether to make an award of a budgeting loan to the applicant or the amount to be awarded, the decision maker shall have regard to the persons who are members of the applicant’s household at the date of the determination
(2)Whether a person is a member of the applicant’s household at the date of the determination for the purposes of this direction shall be determined in accordance with -
(a)regulation 16 of the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987 where the applicant or his partner is in receipt of income support, or payments on account of income support, at the date of the determination.
(b)regulation 78 of the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996 where the applicant or his partner is in receipt of income-based jobseeker’s allowance, or payments on account of income-based jobseeker’s allowance, at the date of the determination; or
(c)regulation 16 of the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987 where the applicant or his partner is in receipt of state pension credit, or payments on account of state pension credit, at the date of the determination
Direction 52 – Weightings for personal circumstances52.The weighting values referred to in direction 53 which will be applied to the baseline figure referred to in Direction 40(f) and Direction 41 in arriving at the maximum amount available by way of a budgeting loan, are as follows:
(a)the weighting value to be attached to a household containing only the applicant is one;
(b)where the applicant has a partner, the weighting value to be attached to the household is one and one third;
(c)where there is one or more children aged 18 or under in the applicant’s household, the weighting value to be attached to the household is two and one third.”
Direction 53 – What to award53.(1)Having identified the applicant’s personal circumstances in accordance with direction 50, and the weighting values which apply to those personal circumstances as specified in direction 52, the decision maker shall determine the maximum amount available by way of a budgeting loan to the applicant by applying the appropriate weighting value to the baseline figure issued by the Department.
(2)Subject to paragraph 3 and directions 9 and 11, the highest award which may be made on any application shall be the lesser of:
(a)the amount applied for; and
(b)the maximum amount, less any budgeting loan debt owed by the applicant and his partner.
(3)No award may be made which causes the sum repayable to the social fund by the applicant and his partner (by way of crisis loan and budgeting loan ) to exceed £1500.
(4)The minimum amount that may be awarded as a budgeting loan is £100.
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