Discretionary Financial Assistance Regulations 2001
2001 No. 1167
SOCIAL SECURITY
The Discretionary Financial Assistance Regulations 2001
Made 25th March 2001
Laid before Parliament 28th March 2001
Coming into force 2nd July 2001
The Secretary of State for Social Security in exercise of the powers conferred upon him by section 69(1) to (4) and (7) of the Child Support, Pensions and Social Security Act 20001and section 189(4) to (6) of the Social Security Administration Act 19922after consultation with organisations appearing to him to be representative of the authorities concerned3, by this Instrument which is made before the end of the period of six months beginning with the coming into force of section 69 of the Child Support, Pensions and Social Security Act 20004, hereby makes the following Regulations:
Citation, commencement and interpretation
1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Discretionary Financial Assistance Regulations 2001 and shall come into force on 2nd July 2001.
(2) In these Regulations, “the Housing Benefit Regulations” means the Housing Benefit (General) Regulations 19875.
Discretionary housing payments
2.—(1) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3) and the following regulations, a relevant authority may make payments by way of financial assistance (“discretionary housing payments”) to persons who—
(a)
(a) are entitled to housing benefit or council tax benefit or to both; and
(b)
(b) appear to such an authority to require some further financial assistance (in addition to the benefit or benefits to which they are entitled) in order to meet housing costs.
(2) Subject to paragraph (3) and regulations 4 and 5, a relevant authority has a discretion—
(a)
(a) as to whether or not to make discretionary housing payments in a particular case; and
(b)
(b) as to the amount of the payments and the period for, or in respect of which, they are made.
(3) Paragraphs (1) and (2) shall not apply in respect of housing costs incurred in any period before 2nd July 2001—
(a)
(a) in the case of a person entitled to council tax benefit who requires further financial assistance in order to meet his liability to pay council tax;
(b)
(b) in the case of a person entitled to housing benefit who requires further financial assistance in order to meet housing costs (other than costs in respect of council tax) arising from his liability to make periodical payments in respect of the dwelling which he occupies as his home.
Circumstances in which discretionary housing payments may be made
3. For the purposes of section 69(2)(a) of the Child Support, Pensions and Social Security Act 2000, the prescribed circumstance in which discretionary housing payments may be made is where a person has made a claim for a discretionary housing payment and the requirement for financial assistance does not arise as a consequence of—
(a) a liability to meet any of the ineligible service charges specified in Schedule 1 to the Housing Benefit Regulations (ineligible service charges)6;
(b) a liability to meet charges for water, sewerage or allied environmental services;
(c) a liability to meet council tax payments in a case where the person is entitled to housing benefit but not council tax benefit;
(d) a liability to make periodical payments in respect of such housing costs as are referred to in regulation 10 of the Housing Benefit Regulations7in a case where the person is entitled to council tax benefit but not housing benefit;
(e) a liability to meet council tax where the conditions in section 131(4) and (5) of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 19928are not satisfied and alternative maximum council tax benefit is payable;
(f) a liability to meet the increase in such payment as is referred to in regulation 8(2A) of the Housing Benefit Regulations9;
(g) a reduction of an amount of benefit by virtue of section 46(11) of the Child Support Act 199110;
(h) a reduction of a specified amount of benefit by virtue of section 2A of the Social Security Administration Act 199211;
(i) a reduction in the amount of a jobseeker’s allowance payable by virtue of section 17 of the Jobseekers Act 199512;
(j) the non-payability of a jobseeker’s allowance or a reduction in the amount of a jobseeker’s allowance payable, pursuant to a decision made by virtue of section 19 or 20A of the Jobseekers Act 199513;
(k) the suspension of payment of an amount of benefit by virtue of section 21, 22 or 24 of the Social Security Act 199814or section 68 of, and paragraphs 13 and 14 of Schedule 7 to, the Child Support, Pensions and Social Security Act 2000.
Limit on the amount of the discretionary housing payment that may be made
4. The amount of a discretionary housing payment (if calculated as a weekly sum) shall not exceed, in a case where the need for further financial assistance arises as a consequence of the liability to make—
(a) periodical payments in respect of the dwelling which a person occupies as his home, other than payments in respect of council tax, an...
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