The Social Security (Use of Information for Housing Benefit and Welfare Services Purposes) Regulations 2008
2008 No. 2112
Social Security, England And Wales
The Social Security (Use of Information for Housing Benefit and Welfare Services Purposes) Regulations 2008
Made 5th August 2008
Laid before Parliament 8th August 2008
Coming into force 1st September 2008
The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions makes the following Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by section 42(2), (8) and (9) of the Welfare Reform Act 20071.
The Secretary of State has consulted with such organisations which appear to the Secretary of State to be representative of the authorities concerned with these Regulations in so far as they relate to housing benefit2.
Citation and commencement
1. These Regulations may be cited as the Social Security (Use of Information for Housing Benefit and Welfare Services Purposes) Regulations 2008 and shall come into force on 1st September 2008.
Interpretation
2. In these Regulations—
“the 2007 Act” means the Welfare Reform Act 2007;
“benefit or welfare services information” means information falling within section 42(3) of the 2007 Act (information relating to certain benefits);
“claimant” means a person claiming housing benefit;
“excluded tenancy” means a type of tenancy falling within any of paragraphs 4 to 11 of Schedule 2 to the Housing Benefit Regulations (excluded tenancies) or paragraphs 4 to 11 of Schedule 2 to the Housing Benefit (State Pension Credit) Regulations (excluded tenancies), as the case may require;
“exempt accommodation” has the meaning given by sub-paragraph 4(10) of Schedule 3 to the Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit (Consequential Provisions) Regulations 20063(transitional and savings provisions);
“hostel” has the same meaning as it has in the Housing Benefit Regulations or the Housing Benefit (State Pension Credit) Regulations, as the case may require;
“the Housing Benefit Regulations” means the Housing Benefit Regulations 20064;
“the Housing Benefit (State Pension Credit) Regulations” means the Housing Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations 20065;
“landlord” includes a person to whom rent is payable by the person entitled to a rent allowance for the purposes of regulation 95 of the Housing Benefit Regulations (circumstances in which payment is to be made to a landlord) or regulation 76 of the Housing Benefit (State Pension Credit) Regulations (circumstances in which payment is to be made to a landlord), as the case may require;
“registered social landlord” has the same meaning as in Part 1 of the Housing Act 19966;
“relevant person” means a person falling within any of paragraphs (c) to (h) of section 42(4) of the 2007 Act;
“rent” has the same meaning as it has in the Housing Benefit Regulations or the Housing Benefit (State Pension Credit) Regulations, as the case may require.
Prescribed purposes in section 42(2) of the 2007 Act
3. Regulations 4, 5 and 6 prescribe meanings of “prescribed purpose” in section 42(2) of the 2007 Act (information relating to certain benefits) for the purposes set out in those regulations.
Holding purposes relating to welfare services
4.—(1) This regulation prescribes the purposes for which a relevant person holds benefit or welfare services information (“holding purposes”).
(2) The holding purposes are purposes relating to welfare services which may indicate—
(a)
(a) whether a claimant is likely to have difficulty in managing his financial affairs;
(b)
(b) the probability that a claimant will pay his rent;
(c)
(c) whether a landlord—
(i) was or is to provide qualifying welfare services within the meaning of section 42(6) of the 2007 Act, but
(ii) has not provided those services or...
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