The main changes are described in paragraphs 4 to 13 below .sx Calculation of affordable loan .sx 4 .sx DOE Circular 12/90 indicated that the 'loan generation factor' used to calculate the notional 'affordable loan' , which represents the amount by which grant is reduced , would be uprated to reflect changes in the standard national rate .sx Regulation 2(5 ) accordingly amends Regulation 10 of the principal regulations by substituting a new factor of 53.35 for owner-occupiers and of 35.37 for tenants .sx Allowances and premiums .sx 5 .sx All the allowances and premiums set out in Schedule 1 to the principal regulations are amended to provide an increase in line with the annual 'Rossi Index' which is applied for the purpose of uprating housing benefit , community charge bendefit and income support .sx The relevant amendments are contained in Regulation 2 .sx The increased allowances and premiums are reproduced at Annex A to this Circular .sx 6 .sx Regulation 2(13)(d)(vii ) also introduces a new premium :sx the carer premium .sx This is available either where a relevant person and/or his partner is in receipt of invalid care allowance or where either or both would have been in receipt of that allowance but for an overlapping benefit .sx Overlapping benefits include injury benefit , unemployability supplement , industrial death benefit , war pension death benefit and training allowance ( see the Social Security ( Overlapping Benefits ) Regulations 1979 ( SI 1979 ) .sx In the latter case the claim for invalid care allowance must have been made on or after 1 May 1991 and the person in respect of whose care the allowance has been claimed must be in receipt of attendance allowance .sx The new carer premium is pounds10 .sx 80 ( Regulation 2(13)(f)) .sx 7 .sx In addition to any relevant personal allowances and premiums , all applicants are entitled to an additional 'grant premium' .sx Regulation 2(4 ) amends Regulation 8 of the principal regulations to increase the grant premium from pounds20 to pounds22 .sx The new figure is based on the increase in the Retail Price Index over the same period as the Rossi Index on the basis of which other allowances and premiums have been uprated .sx 8 .sx Authorities should note that these regulations introduce amendments to Schedule 1 of the principal regulations which make disability premium available in a slightly different way from that which obtains for housing benefit purposes .sx The amendments are designed to reflect the fact that , whilst either member of a couple may be the claimant for benefit , for grant purposes the applicant must be a person having the requisite interest in the property which is the subject of the grant application .sx Regulation 2(13)(d)(iii ) , ( iv ) and ( vi ) accordingly extends eligibility for disability premium to cover circumstances where either the relevant person or his partner satisfies the conditions of paragraphs 11(b ) and 12(1)(b ) of Schedule 1 to the principal regulations .sx This means that , where disability premium is allowed in respect of a partner rather than the relevant person himself , it will also be available where that partner falls within the rules governing long term incapacity for work instead of being confined to circumstances where the partner is in receipt of attendance allowance etc. Disregards .sx 9 .sx The Regulations introduce a number of new or amended disregards in line with recent changes to housing benefit rules .sx These include :sx ( i ) an extension of the cross references in regulations 22(2 ) and 24(2 ) of the principal regulations to include paragraph 12 of Schedule 2 in order to ensure that bank charges and commission on converting earnings paid in overseas currency are deducted in the calculation of an employed person's earnings or a self-employed person's net profit ; .sx ( ii ) an increase in the lone parent's earnings disregard from pounds15 to pounds25 ( this disregard applies also to lone parents who are disabled or over 60 who would have qualified for lone parent premium were a disability premium of one of the pensioner premiums not applicabe ) ; .sx ( iii ) the introduction of new income and capital disregards in respect of regular one-off assistance given towards expenditure on National Health Services under the National Health Service ( Travelling Expenses and Remission of Charges ) Regulations 1988 ( SI 1988 No .sx 551 ) and its Scottish equivalent ( as amended ) and on payments and repayments providing equivalent assistance ( see Regulation 2(15)(d ) and ( 16)(g ) which insert a new paragraph 44 and a new paragraph 38 into Schedules 3 and 4 ) ; .sx ( iv ) the introduction of new income and capital disregards in respect of regular or one-off payments made in place of milk tokens or the supply of vitamins under the Welfare Food Regulations 1988 ( SI 1988 No .sx 536 as amended ) and of any payments made by the relevant Secretary of State under a scheme to assist relatives and others with prison visits ( new paragraphs 45 and 46 and 39 and 40 are inserted into Schedules 3 and 4 respectively of the principal regulations by Regulation 2(15)(d ) and ( 16)(g) ) ; .sx ( v ) a total disregard of regular voluntary and charitable payments other than those intended for food , ordinary clothing or footwear , houshold fuel , eligible rent , community charges or water charges , all of which payments continue to be eligible for a weekly disregard of pounds10 subject to an overriding pounds10 limit ( see the new paragraph 13 of Schedule 3 to the principal regulations substituted by Regulation 2(15)(b) ) ; .sx ( vi ) an amendment to the disregard provided in paragraph 5(a ) of Schedule 4 to the principal regulations in respect of property occupied by relatives to ensure that this disregard operates in relation to a single relevant person as well as to relevant persons who are members of a family ( Regulation 2(16)(a) ) ; .sx ( vii ) a disregard of the assets of a business where a self-employed relevant person has ceased to trade because of illness or injury but intends to return to that business as soon as possible ( a new sub - paragraph ( 2 ) to paragraph 8 of Schedule 4 is added by Regulation 2(16)(b) ) ; .sx ( viii ) a total disregard of trust funds ( and the value of the right to receive any payment under the trust ) where the funds are derived from a payment made in consequence of personal injury to a relevant person except where the value represents funds for carrying out works which are the subject of the application for grant ( Regulation 2(16)(c ) which substitutes a new paragraph 14 in Schedule 4 to the principal regulations ) ; .sx ( ix ) a total disregard of any arrears of special war widows' payments which fall to be disregarded under paragraph 42 of Schedule 3 to the principal regulations ( see new paragraph 37 inserted by Regulation 2(16)(g) ) ; .sx ( x ) the amendment of the capital disregard contained in paragraph 16 of Schedule 4 of the principal regulations to ensure that the value of the right to receive earnings payable in a country outside the United Kingdom but on which there is a ban on transfer of those earnings to the United Kingdom is treated in the same way as the value of the right to receive other income from such a country ( see Regulation 2(16)(d)) .sx Students .sx 10 .sx The Regulations also contain amendments relevant to the calculation of students' income designed to take into account the availability of student loans under the Education ( Student Loans ) Act 1990 or the Education ( Student Loans ) ( Northern Ireland ) Order 1990 and of Access Fund payments made under the provisions of the Education ( Further and Higher Education Institutes ) ( Access Funds ) Regulations 1990 .sx In particular , Regulation 2(12)(c ) inserts a new regulation 42A to cover the treatment of student loans .sx Authorities should note that not only is any loan actually made to be treated as income but in addition any loan for which a student is eligible in accordance with arrangements made under the 1990 Act or Order is treated as income even though the student may not have acquired the loan .sx For this purpose a student is deemed to be in possession of the maximum loan which would be payable .sx By virtue of Regulation 19 of the principal regulations , student loans fall to be apportioned on a weekly basis thus ensuring that the disregards operate in relation to average weekly income rather than in relation to the lump sum paid .sx 11 .sx Regulation 2(15)(c ) provides for an additional disregard of pounds10 per week in respect of student loan income .sx This means that in many cases student loan income or notional income will be entirely disregarded .sx Authorities should note , however , that regular Access Fund payments are to be treated in the same way as voluntary payments .sx The disregard mentioned in paragraph 9(v ) above will therefore apply in respect of such payments .sx Where a combination of student loan income and income from Access Fund payments exceeds pounds10 per week the provisions of paragraph 33 of Schedule 3 to the principal regulations will have the effect of limiting the total disregard to pounds10 .sx 12 .sx There are two other amendments which affect the calculation of student income .sx Regulation 2(12)(a ) amends the definition of grant to exclude hardship payments paid to students under section 100 of the Education Act 1944 , sections 131 and 132 of the Education Reform Act 1988 or section 73 of the Education ( Scotland ) Act 1980 .sx Such payments are therefore not taken into account as part of grant income .sx In addition Regulation 2(12)(b ) increases the sum to be excluded from the calculation of grant income in respect of books and equipment from pounds234 to pounds246 .sx Miscellaneous .sx 13 .sx There are also a number of minor amendments of which authorities will wish to be aware .sx Regulation 2(3 ) amends the definition of non-dependant to exclude not only a relevant person's landlord/landlady as before but also any members of the landlord's/landlady's family who may be living in the dwelling concerned .sx Regulation 2(10 ) and ( 11 ) introduces amendments to the provisions on notional income and capital ( Regulations 28 and 35 of the principal regulations ) designed to ensure that payments for water charges made to a third party on behalf of a relevant person are counted as part of that person's income or capital in the same way as payments to third parties in respect of food etc. are counted .sx For the purpose of these provisions a definition of 'water charges' is inserted in Regulation 2 of the principal regulations .sx Regulation 16 of the principal regulations is amended to make it plain that 'income' includes capital treated as income , notional income and acutal or notional income derived from student loans ( see Regulation2(6)) .sx Finally , the provisions of the Enterprise and New Towns ( Scotland ) Act 1990 , which establishes two new bodies responsible for training policies and practice , are reflected by the inclusion of a reference to that Act in those places where there are references to the Employment and Training Act 1973 which is no longer relevant in Scotland in relation to certain training powers .sx The Housing Renovation etc. Grants ( Prescribed Forms and Particulars ) ( Amendment ) Regulations 1991 .sx 14 .sx These regulations make some minor amendments to the prescribed forms used when applying for grant .sx The amendments to the forms used in connection with applications for renovation , disabled facilities and common parts grants ( Forms 1 to 3 ) are necessary to reflect the amendments discussed in paragraphs 3 to 13 .sx The amendments to Form 4 ( application for HMO grant ) correct errors in questions 2.9 and 2.11 which result in the applicant being guided to the wrong question ( see Regulation 2(10 ) and ( 11)) .sx 15 .sx The main amendments are necessitated by the introduction of the new carer premium mentioned in paragraph 6 above .sx This means that authorities will need to have information about eligibility for invalid care allowance .sx Since question 3.13 on Form 1 and its equivalents on other forms are the main source of information for assessing the 'applicable amount' a new question is inserted asking about this allowance together with a new note , 30A , which advises applicants to answer 'yes' where they would have been in receipt of this allowance but for an overlapping benefit .sx Authorities should note , however , that they may need to make some additional enquiries to establish eligibility for carer premium where that eligibility would depend on the circumstances covered in the new paragraph 14A(2 ) of Schedule 1 to the Housing Renovation etc. Grants ( Reduction of Grant ) Regulations 1990 .sx 16 .sx Question 3.38 on Form 1 and its equivalents on Forms 2 and 3 are amended to include a question about student loans .sx