Statutory Instruments of the Scottish Parliament

"European Economic Area" means the European Community and, subjectto the conditions laid down in the Agreement on the European Economic Areasigned at Oporto on 2nd May 1992[1], as adjusted by theProtocol signed at Brussels on 17th March 1993[2], the areacomprised by the Republic of Ireland, the Kingdom of Norway and thePrincipality of Liechtenstein;

"Learning Account administrator" means a body which has anapproval given by the Scottish Ministers for the purposes of theseRegulations which has not been withdrawn;

"learning account holder" means a person who is a party toqualifying arrangements as specified in regulation 2; and

"qualifying person" has the meaning given in regulation 3.

Qualifying arrangements
     2.  - (1) For the purposes of section 2 of the Act, arrangements qualify underthat section if-

(a) they take the form of registration by a qualifying person with aLearning Account administrator; and

(b) the registration has not been cancelled or withdrawn in accordance withregulation 4.

    (2) Arrangements also qualify under section 2 of the Act if they are-

(a) arrangements which qualify under section 105 of the Learning and SkillsAct 2000[3] by virtue of regulations made by the Secretary ofState;

(b) arrangements which qualify under section 105 of the Learning and SkillsAct 2000 by virtue of regulations made by the National Assembly for Wales;or

(c) arrangements which qualify under section 106 of the Learning and SkillsAct 2000,

and the person who is a party to them would be a qualifying person ifhe had applied for registration with a Learning Account administrator atthe time when any grant payable in respect of his education or trainingunder these Regulations became so payable.

Qualifying Persons
     3.  - (1) For the purposes of these Regulations a person is a qualifying personif at the time of registration he has attained the age of 18 and hesatisfies the condition specified in paragraph (2).

    (2) The condition referred to in paragraph (1) is that the person isresident in Scotland on a temporary or permanent basis and, where suchresidence is temporary, he is ordinarily resident within the EuropeanEconomic Area.

    (3) For the purposes of paragraph (2), the residence of a member of thenaval, military or air force of the Crown ("a member of the armedforces") shall be determined as follows:

(a) unless sub-paragraph (b) applies, a member of the armed forces shall betreated as resident at the establishment where he is for the time beingserving; and

(b) where the member of the armed forces is serving at an establishmentoutside the United Kingdom, he shall be treated as resident at theestablishment in the United Kingdom where he most recently served,disregarding any establishment at which he served for a period of less thana month.

Registration
     4.  - (1) A Learning Account administrator may require an applicant forregistration to provide such information or documents as the LearningAccount administrator may determine, in order for the Learning Accountadministrator to determine whether the person is eligible to become alearning account holder, and may decline to accept an application forregistration unless such information or documents are provided.

    (2) A Learning Account administrator may at any time cancel a registrationof a learning account holder if-

(a) the person ceases to be eligible to be a learning account holder; or

(b) it appears to the Learning Account administrator that any informationprovided under paragraph (1) by or on behalf of the learning account holderwas false in a material particular.

    (3) A learning account holder may at any time withdraw his registrationwith a Learning Account administrator by notifying the Learning Accountadministrator in writing.

    (4) Where a person is a party to qualifying arrangements, he may not at anytime become a party to other such arrangements and accordingly anysubsequent registration with a Learning Account administrator shall be ofno effect.

Grants to or in respect of learning account holders
     5. Grant may be paid in accordance with regulations 7 and 8 below to or inrespect of learning account holders in connection with their education ortraining where the learning account holder at the time of payment of thegrant is not eligible for any scholarship, grant or other allowance paidout of public funds in respect of the education or training in question andthe education or training falls within regulation 6(1).

Education and training for which grant can be paid
     6.  - (1) The education or training referred to in regulation 5 is any educationor training other than excepted education which is provided by a person whofor the time being has been approved by a person who (at the time ofapproval) is designated by the Scottish Ministers for the purposes of thisregulation.

    (2) In this regulation, "excepted education or training" means-

(a) secondary education within the meaning of section 135(2)(b) of theEducation (Scotland) Act 1980[4];

(b) full-time higher education (that is to say education provided by meansof a full-time course of any description mentioned in section 38(2)(b),(c), (d) or (e) of the Further and Higher Education (Scotland) Act 1992

;(c) education or training which is a statutory requirement for theindividual's particular employment;

(d) lessons for the purposes of sitting a test of competence to driveleading to a category A or B driving licence granted under the MotorVehicles (Driving Licences) Regulations 1999[5];

(e) such other education or training as may be specified by the ScottishMinisters.

Amount and type of grant
     7.  - (1) A learning account holder shall be eligible for only one of thefollowing grants in an account holder's year-

(a) subject to paragraph (5), in his first account holder's year only, agrant or grants of up to £150 in total towards the costs and expensesof education or training commenced in that year provided that-


(i) he has first paid a minimum of £25 towards the cost of sucheducation or training to its provider; and

(ii) he has become a learning account holder on, or prior to, thecommencement of the course in respect of which the grant has been claimed;



(b) a grant of eighty per cent of the costs of such education or trainingin basic computing, numeracy or communication as may be specified by theScottish Ministers up to such maximum amount of grant in any accountholder's year as may be determined by the Scottish Ministers; and

(c) a grant of twenty per cent of the costs of such education or trainingup to a maximum amount of £100 in any account holder's year.

    (2) The costs of education and training which shall be eligible for grantin accordance with paragraph (1) shall be the direct costs of the educationor training including course registration, assessment fees, qualificationand examination fees, the provision of professional advice and guidance, orsuch other costs as may be determined by the Scottish Ministers.

    (3) In addition to the grants specified in paragraph (1), the ScottishMinisters may pay to learning account holders an additional grant inrespect of any travel, accommodation or other costs incurred by thelearning account holder as a result of his undertaking the relevanteducation or training.

    (4) The amount of such additional grant as specified in paragraph (3), themanner and timing of payment and the conditions of eligibility shall be asdetermined by the Scottish Ministers, and different amounts and conditionsof eligibility may be determined by the Scottish Ministers for differentcategories of learning account holder.

    (5) A maximum of 100,000 grants of the type specified in paragraph (1)(a)shall be paid by the Scottish Ministers.

Grant: supplementary provision
     8.  - (1) Grants shall be paid at such times and in such instalments as theScottish Ministers may determine.

    (2) Grants other than those payments specified in Regulation 7(3) shall bepaid to the person providing the education or training.

    (3) All grants shall be paid subject to such terms as the ScottishMinisters may determine, including terms requiring repayment of the wholeor part of the grant if, and by whichever of, the person receiving thegrant or the person providing the education or training does not complywith any terms applicable to that person in respect of the grant.

    (4) Grants may be paid by the Scottish Ministers or by a Learning Accountsadministrator under arrangements made with them.

Transitional provisions
     9. Any person, who before the coming into force of these Regulations was aparty to an arrangement made by Scottish Enterprise, Highlands and IslandsEnterprise, or a Local Enterprise Company, known as an Individual LearningAccount, shall be treated as a qualifying person who has registered with aLearning Account administrator under regulation 2(1)(a).

Amendment of the Act
     10. In each of subsections (1)(b) and (2)(d)(ii) of section 1 of the Act,for "100" there shall be substituted "104".


NICOL STEPHEN
Authorised to sign by the Scottish Ministers

St Andrew's House, Edinburgh
21st August 2000

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations define "arrangements" which qualify undersection 2 of the Education and Training (Scotland) Act 2000 ("theAct") and provide for payment of grants to persons who are parties tosuch qualifying arrangements (such persons being defined in the Regulationsas "learning account holders").

Regulations 2 to 4 deal with qualifying arrangements. The arrangementstake the form of registration by a qualifying person (defined in regulation3) with a body approved by the Scottish Ministers (referred to in theRegulations as a "Learning Account administrator") which has not beenwithdrawn or cancelled. In certain circumstances, qualifying arrangementsunder corresponding provisions applying in England, Wales or NorthernIreland will be qualifying arrangements also. Regulation 4 deals withgeneral matters in connection with registration.

Regulations 5 to 8 provide for payment of grants to or in respect oflearning account holders. Regulation 5 provides for the power to paygrants. Regulation 6 provides for the kind of education and training inrespect of which grant is payable. Regulation 7 provides for the amount ofgrant, and regulation 8 contains various supplementary provisions includingprovision for the grant to be paid in such manner as the Scottish Ministersdetermine and provision for payment of grants to the person providing theeducation or training.

Regulation 9 contains transitional provisions.

Regulation 10 amends references in the Act to section 100 of theLearning and Skills Act 2000 to references to section 104 in consequence ofrenumbering of clauses of the Bill for that Act during the passage of thatBill.

[1] Cm 2073.back

[2] Cm 2183.back

[3] 2000 c.21.back

[4] 1980 c.44.back

[5] S.I. 1999/2864.back

ISBN 0110594495