# The Social Security (Lone Parents and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016, Note: Explanatory note

Extent: N.I.

(This note is not part of the Regulations)
These Regulations amend the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987 (“the Income Support Regulations”), the Jobseekers Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996, the Social Security (Work-focused Interviews for Lone Parents) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2001 (“the Lone Parents Regulations”), the Social Security (Work-focused Interviews) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2003 (“the Work-focused Interviews Regulations”) and the Employment and Support Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008.
Regulation 2 replaces paragraph 1 of Schedule 1B to the Income Support Regulations with the result that a lone parent is entitled to income support solely on grounds of being a lone parent, only if they are under 18 or if their youngest child is under the age of 5.
Regulation 3 amends the Jobseekers Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996 so as to treat a lone parent who is responsible for, and a member of the same household as, a child aged 5 who is not receiving and is not required to receive full-time education as being available for, and actively seeking employment, where it would be unreasonable for the lone parent to make other arrangements for the child’s care.
Regulation 4 amends the Lone Parents Regulations so that lone parents are required to take part in work-focused interviews every 13 weeks under regulation 2ZA of those Regulations only if their youngest child is aged 4.
Regulation 5 amends the Work-focused Interviews Regulations, so that lone parents are required to take part in work-focused interviews every 13 weeks under regulation 3A of those Regulations, only if their youngest child is aged 4.
Regulation 6 amends the Employment and Support Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008 to extend the circumstances in which entitlement to the support or work-related activity components of Employment and Support Allowance can arise even though the assessment phase has not ended to include cases where a lone parent’s entitlement to income support ends as result of these Regulations.
Regulation 7 makes transitional provision for lone parents who are existing income support claimants and who are also full-time students or following certain full time courses, so that paragraph 1 of Schedule 1B to the Income Support Regulations, as in operation immediately before these Regulations come into operation, continues to apply to them until their youngest child reaches the age when they would otherwise have ceased to be entitled to income support, or until they cease to take part in a course that is covered by the provision or make a new claim for income support. During any such transitional period the lone parent will continue to be required to take part in work-focused interviews every 13 weeks.
Regulation 8 makes consequential revocations.
The Schedule makes provision for the changes to paragraph 1 of Schedule 1B to the Income Support Regulations, to regulation 2ZA of the Lone Parents Regulations and to regulation 3A of the Work-focused Interviews Regulations to take effect at a later date in the case of certain existing claimants linked to the age of the claimant’s youngest child and the date on which the child’s birthday falls. It also provides for the change to income support entitlement to take effect later for some lone parents, and in certain circumstances, for the changes made to the Lone Parents Regulations and the Work-focused Interviews Regulations to also be postponed.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/nisr/2016/67/note (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/social-security-lone-parents-and-miscellaneous-amendments-regulations-northern-ireland-2016/note
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.