Citation, commencement and interpretation

1.-(1) These Regulations may he cited as the National Assistance (Charges for Accommodation) (Scotland) Regulations 1991 and shall come into force on 8th April 1991.

(2) These Regulations shall extend to Scotland only.

(3) In these Regulations-

"the Act" means the National Assistance Act 1948;

"Personal Injuries Scheme", "Service Pensions Instrument" and "1914-1918 War Injuries Scheme" have the same meanings as in the Social Security (Overlapping Benefits) Regulations 1979(2);

a reference to a section of the Act is a reference to the section as applied by section 87(3) of the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968(3) for the purposes of accommodation provided under that Act or under section 7 of the Mental Health (Scotland) Act 1984(4).

Revocation

2. The National Assistance (Charges for Accommodation) (Scotland) Regulations 1990(5) are hereby revoked.

Minimum charges

3.-(1) Subject to paragraph (2), the liability of a person under section 22(3) of the Act to pay for accommodation provided for him shall in no case be reduced below the sum of £41.60 per week.

(2) Where accommodation is provided for a child accompanied by a person over the age of 16, the liability of that person under section 22(3) and (7) of the Act to pay for the accommodation of that child shall in no case be reduced below whichever of the following sums is appropriate, that is to say-

(a)in respect of a child under the age of 11, the sum of £13.35 per week;

(b)in respect of a child aged 11 years or over but under the age of 16, the sum of £19.75 per week.

Sum needed for personal requirements

4. The sum which a local authority shall under section 22(4) of the Act assume that a person needs for his personal requirements shall be £10.40 per week except that, where that person is someone to whom there is payable attendance allowance under the provisions of section 35 of the Social Security Act 1975(6) or constant attendance allowance under any Personal Injuries Scheme, Service Pensions Instrument or any 1914-1918 War Injuries Scheme, the said sum of £10.40 shall in respect of each week there is payable attendance allowance or constant attendance allowance be increased by the amount of such allowance.

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations replace the National Assistance (Charges for Accommodation) (Scotland) Regulations 1990.

They increase from £37.50 to £41.60 the minimum weekly amount which a person is required to pay for accommodation provided for him under the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968 (which by virtue of section 87(3) of that Act is to be regarded for purposes of charges as accommodation provided under Part III of the National Assistance Act 1948). This applies both to accommodation in premises managed by a local authority and (by virtue of section 26(3) of the 1948 Act) to acommodation provided by other persons under arrangements made by the local authority. They also increase the minimum weekly amount payable for that accommodation in respect of a child accompanying such a person, from £12.35 to £13.35 where the child is under the age of 11, and from £18.25 to £19.75 where he is between the ages of 11 and 16.

The Regulations also increase from £9.40 to £10.40 the weekly sum which, in assessing a person's liability to pay for such accommodation, a local authority is, in the absence of a special circumstances, to assume will be needed for personal requirements.

Accommodation provided under section 7 of the Mental Health (Scotland) Act 1984 is, with effect from I st April 1991, also to be treated for purposes of charges as accommodation provided under Part III of the National Assistance Act 1948. (Section 87(3) of the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968 as amended by paragraph 10(13)(c) of Schedule 9 to the National Health Service and Community Care Act 1990 provides for this.) The provisions of these Regulations therefore apply to that accommodation also.