HC Deb 16 March 1989 vol 149 c306W
Mrs. Wise

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if local authorities treat a full-time student who receives no grant as though he did receive a full grant, for the purpose of assessing housing benefit eligibility.

Mr. Peter Lloyd

When an award is made in respect of student maintenance, the full grant is taken into account for the purposes of establishing entitlement to housing benefit. This applies even when the amount of grant payable has been reduced or extinguished by an assessed contribution in respect of the income of a parent or a spouse of the student, whether or not that contribution has actually been received by the student.

When no award has been made, however, there is no provision to take a notional grant into account.