15 DECEMBER 2005

NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE, No. 207

Social Development

Social Security Act 1964

Family Start and Early Start (Childcare Assistance) Programme

Pursuant to section 124 (1) (d) of the Social Security Act 1964, the Minister for Social Development and Employment establishes and approves the following programme for special assistance.

Dated at Wellington this 12th day of September 2005.

STEVE MAHAREY, Minister for Social Development and Employment.

Programme

1. Title—This programme is the Family Start and Early Start (Childcare Assistance) Programme.

2. Commencement—This programme comes into effect on 1 December 2005.

3. Purpose—The purpose of this programme is to provide childcare assistance to families who are enrolled in selected Family Start or Early Start programmes.

4. Interpretation—(1) In this programme, unless the context otherwise requires:

   Act means the Social Security Act 1964

   applicant means a person who applies for assistance or a person on whose behalf an application for assistance is made

   assistance means Family Start and Early Start childcare assistance, being the special assistance under this programme

   eligible child means a child who is a dependent child of an applicant and who:

   • (a) is not less than 18 months and not more than 36 months of age; and
   • (b) is from a Family Start or Early Start family; and
   • (c) is enrolled in an approved early-childhood programme

   Family Start or Early Start family means a family who is enrolled in a programme for the time being recognised by the chief executive as a Family Start programme or an Early Start programme (as the case may be) and selected by the chief executive for the purposes of this programme

   Family Start or Early Start worker means the family/whanau worker allocated to a Family Start or Early Start family and who provides services relating to the Family Start programme or Early Start programme

   Regulations means the Social Security (Childcare Assistance) Regulations 2004

   working day means working day as defined by the Act together with any day the approved early-childhood programme is operating from 25 December in any year to 15 January the following year.

   (2) Terms otherwise defined in the Act or the Regulations have the same meanings in this programme.

5. Application of Social Security Act—(1) Sections 12, 62, 74 (1) (a), 74A, 80 (1), 80A, 80BD (1), 81, 84, 84A and 86J of the Act apply to this programme and to any applicant as if the special assistance under it were a benefit and the applicant were a beneficiary.

   (2) Nothing in subclause (1) limits or affects the application of any other provision of the Act.

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6. Family Start or Early Start childcare assistance: Eligibility—The chief executive may grant assistance in respect of the attendance of each eligible child of the applicant at an approved early-childhood programme up to a maximum of:

   • (a) 20 hours per week for an eligible child under 30 months of age; or
   • (b) 15 hours per week for an eligible child 30 months of age or older.

7. Applications and evidence—(1) No person can be granted assistance unless he or she:

   • (a) has applied for it in writing on a form required by the chief executive; and
   • (b) has given the chief executive the evidence the chief executive requires to satisfy the chief executive that the person is eligible for the assistance.

8. Rate of assistance—(1) The amount of assistance payable in respect of any week is:

   a – b but not more than c

   (2) No assistance is payable in respect of any week in which b is greater than a.

   (3) In this clause:

   a is the weekly cost:

   • (a) of the eligible child’s attendance at the approved early-childhood programme based on:
     • (i) the actual hourly fee payable; or
     • (ii) if a periodic flat fee is payable, the average hourly fee payable obtained by dividing the periodic flat fee by the number of hours during the period concerned for which the child is enrolled to participate in the programme; or
   • (b) where clause 9 (a) applies, for keeping open the eligible child’s place in that programme;

   b is any payment made by a person other than the applicant towards a calculated on a weekly basis;

   c is $6.00 per hour multiplied by the number of hours per week (not exceeding the appropriate number of hours set out in clause 6) for which the child is enrolled to participate in the programme.

9. Payment during absences of eligible child—If an approved early-childhood programme charges a fee for holding open the places of eligible children who are absent from the programme when the programme is available:

   • (a) assistance may continue to be paid for an eligible child for any continuous period of not more than 30 working days when the child is absent from the programme because:
     • (i) the child or applicant is injured or ill; or
     • (ii) of a family bereavement; or
     • (iii) the child is on holiday; or
     • (iv) of other reasonable circumstances; and
   • (b) assistance may be ceased where an eligible child is absent from the programme for a continuous period of 15 working days or more and none of the circumstances in paragraph (a) (i) to (iv) exist.

10. Notification of absences of eligible child—(1) It is a condition of any grant of assistance under this programme that, within a reasonable time after an eligible child for whom assistance is payable is absent from the approved early-childhood programme concerned:

    • (a) the applicant must notify the approved early-childhood service or early-childhood care arranger (as the case may be) of the child’s absence; and
    • (b) the approved early-childhood service or approved early-childhood care arranger in respect of the