Social Fund Maternity and Funeral Expenses (General) Regulations 1987
1987 No. 481
SOCIAL SECURITY
The Social Fund Maternity and Funeral Expenses (General) Regulations 1987
Made 19th March 1987
Laid before Parliament 19th March 1987
Coming into force 6th April 1987
The Secretary of State for Social Services, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by sections 32(2)(a), 84(1) and 89(1) of the Social Security Act 19861and as regards the consequential amendments in Part VI of these Regulations, by sections 3, 4 and 34 of the Supplementary Benefits Act 19762, and of all other powers enabling him in that behalf, by this instrument which contains only regulations made under, and provisions consequential on, the sections of the Social Security Act 1986 specified above and which is made before the end of a period of 12 months from the commencement of those sections, makes the following Regulations:—
PART I
GENERAL
Citation and commencement
1. These Regulations may be cited as the Social Fund Maternity and Funeral Expenses (General) Regulations 1987 and shall come into force on 6th April 1987.
Revocation
2. The Social Fund Maternity and Funeral Expenses (General) Regulations 19863are hereby revoked.
Interpretation
3.—(1) In these Regulations unless the context otherwise requires—
“child” means a person under the age of 16;
“claimant” means a person claiming a social fund payment in respect of maternity or funeral expenses;
“confinement” means labour resulting in the issue of a living child, or labour after 28 weeks of pregnancy resulting in the issue of a child whether alive or dead;
“family” means—
(a) a married or unmarried couple and any children who are members of the same household and for whom one of the couple is or both are responsible;
(b) a person who is not a member of a married or unmarried couple and any children who are members of the same household and for whom that person is responsible;
(c) persons who are members of the same household and between whom there is a polygamous relationship and any children who are also members of the same household and for whom a member of the polygamous relationship is responsible;
“family income supplement” means a supplement under section 1 of the Family Income Supplements Act 19704;
“funeral” means a burial or a cremation;
“funeral payment” is to be construed in accordance with regulation 7;
“housing benefit” means a rate rebate, rent rebate or rent allowance payable under a scheme made under section 28 of the Social Security and Housing Benefits Act 19825including a scheme as modified in accordance with section 30 of that Act;
“married couple” means a man and a woman who are married to each other and are members of the same household;
“maternity payment” is to be construed in accordance with regulation 5;
“partner” means one of a married or unmarried couple or a member of a polygamous relationship;
“occupational pension scheme” has the same meaning as in the Social Security Pensions Act 19756;
“person affected by a trade dispute” means a person—
(a) to whom section 8 of the Supplementary Benefits Act 1976 applies; or
(b) to whom that section would apply if a claim to supplementary benefit were made by or in respect of him;
“responsible member” is to be construed in accordance with regulation 7(1)(b);
“single payment of supplementary benefit” means a single payment to meet an exceptional need under section 3 of the Supplementary Benefits Act 1976;
“supplementary benefit” means a pension or allowance under section 1 of the Supplementary Benefits Act 1976, or under section 4 of that Act, but only in the cases specified in regulations 11, 12, 16, 17 and 19 to 22 of the Supplementary Benefit (Urgent Cases) Regulations 19817;
“unmarried couple” means a man and a woman who are not married to each other but are living together as husband and wife.
(2) For the purposes of these Regulations, two persons who are a married or unmarried couple shall be treated as being or, as the case may be, as having ceased to be members of the same household in the circumstances set out in regulation 2(2) and (3) of the Supplementary Benefit (Aggregation) Regulations 19818.
(3) For the purposes of these Regulations, a person shall be treated as a member of a polygamous relationship where, but for the fact that the relationship includes more than two persons, he would be one of a married or unmarried couple.
(4) In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires, any reference to a numbered regulation is a reference to the regulation bearing that number in these regulations and any reference in a regulation to a numbered paragraph is a reference to the paragraph of that regulation bearing that number.
Provision against double payment
4.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), no maternity payment shall be made under these Regulations if such a payment has already been made in respect of the child in question.
(2) Notwithstanding that a maternity payment has been made to the natural mother of a child or to one of her family, a second such payment may, subject to the following provisions of these Regulations, be made to the adoptive parents of the child in question.
(3) No funeral payment shall be made under these Regulations if such a payment has already been made in respect of the funeral expenses in question.
PART II
PAYMENTS FOR MATERNITY EXPENSES
Entitlement
5.—(1) Subject to regulation 6 and Parts IV and V of these Regulations, a payment to meet maternity expenses (referred to in these Regulations as a “maternity payment”) shall be made only where—
(a)
(a) the claimant or the claimant’s partner is, in respect of the period during which the claim for a maternity payment is made, in receipt of either supplementary benefit or family income supplement; and
(b)
(b) either—
(i) the claimant or, if the claimant is a member of a family, one of the family is pregnant or has given birth to a child; or
(ii) the claimant or the claimant’s partner or both of them have adopted a child not exceeding the age of twelve months at the date of the claim; and
(c)
(c) the claim is made within the period specified for such a claim in regulation 7 of the Social Fund Maternity and Funeral Expenses (Claims and Payments) Regulations 19869.
(2) Subject to Part IV of these Regulations, the amount of a maternity payment shall be—
(a)
(a) where the claim is made before the confinement, £80 in respect of each expected child;
(b)
(b) where the claim is made after the confinement, £80 in respect of each child, including any child who is stillborn;
(c)
(c) where the claim is made after a child has been adopted, £80 in respect of that child.
Persons affected by a trade dispute
6. Where the claimant or the claimant’s partner is a person affected by a trade dispute, a maternity payment shall be made only if—
(a) in the case where the claimant or the claimant’s partner is in receipt of supplementary benefit, the trade dispute has, at the date of the claim for that payment, continued for not less than six weeks; or
(b) in the case where the claimant or the claimant’s partner is in receipt of family income supplement, the claim in respect of which family income supplement was awarded was made before the beginning of the trade dispute.
PART III
PAYMENTS FOR FUNERAL EXPENSES
Entitlement
7.—(1) Subject to regulation 8 and Parts IV and V of these Regulations, a social fund payment to meet funeral expenses (referred to in these regulations as a “funeral payment”) shall be made only where—
(a)
(a) the claimant or his partner is, in respect of the period during which the claim for a funeral payment is made, in receipt of supplementary benefit, family income supplement or housing benefit; and
(b)
(b) the claimant or, if he is a member of a family, one of his family takes responsibility for the costs of a funeral (in these Regulations referred to as the “responsible member”); and
(c)
(c) the funeral takes place in the United Kingdom; and
(d)
(d) the claim is made within the period specified for such a claim in regulation 7 of the Social Fund Maternity and Funeral Expenses (Claims and Payments) Regulations 1986.
(2) Subject to regulation 8 and Part IV of these Regulations, the amount of a funeral payment shall be an amount sufficient to meet any of the...
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