Children's Handbook Scotland 2025/26Chapter 5: Disabled children at residential school 3. Non-means-tested benefits
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3. Non-means-tested benefits
Disability benefits
If your child is away at school and the local authority is paying any of the costs of the accommodation, board or personal care, the child disability payment (CDP) care component or adult disability payment (ADP) daily living component for the child stops after four weeks.1Reg 17 DACYP(S) Regs; reg 27(2) DAWAP(S) Regs The mobility component of CDP/ADP is not affected and continues to be paid.
Two or more periods away at school separated by 28 days or less count as the same period.2Reg 17(3) DACYP(S) Regs; reg 27(3) DAWAP(S) Regs This means that once the CDP care component or ADP daily living component has stopped, if your child comes home for a period of 28 days or less, the CDP care component or ADP daily living component is payable while they are at home (see below), but it stops again as soon as they go back to school.
The day on which your child goes away to school and the day they come home do not count as days away at school.3Reg 19 DACYP(S) Regs; reg 31(2) DAWAP(S) Regs
 
1     Reg 17 DACYP(S) Regs; reg 27(2) DAWAP(S) Regs  »
2     Reg 17(3) DACYP(S) Regs; reg 27(3) DAWAP(S) Regs  »
3     Reg 19 DACYP(S) Regs; reg 31(2) DAWAP(S) Regs  »
If your child comes home temporarily
Once the CDP care component/ADP daily living component has stopped, it should be paid for any day your child spends at home, including the day they come home and the day they leave to go back to school. It is important to tell Social Security Scotland when your child goes away to school and about any days spent at home. The amount of CDP care component/ADP daily living component you get for days your child spends at home is worked out by using a daily rate of the care/daily living component (one-seventh of the weekly amount).1Reg 23(3) DACYP(S) Regs; reg 34(3) DAWAP(S) Regs
Example
Hamza is aged 10 and starts attending a residential school because of his disability. He is entitled to the CDP mobility component at the higher rate and the care component at the highest rate. His first day at his new school is 18 August 2025. Every few weeks he comes home for a long weekend. He comes home on Thursday afternoon and returns to school on Tuesday morning. The dates of his first weekend at home are Thursday 25 September 2025 to Tuesday 30 September 2025. Hamza’s CDP remains in payment for the first 28 days away at school. After that, the mobility component remains in payment, but the care component stops. This means that the last day for which the care component is payable is 15 September 2025. When Hamza comes home for the weekend, the care component is payable for six days (Thursday 25 September to Tuesday 30 September).
 
1     Reg 23(3) DACYP(S) Regs; reg 34(3) DAWAP(S) Regs  »
Carer support payment
If you are getting carer support payment (CSP) for caring for your child, there are two main reasons why your entitlement may be affected if they are away at school.
    •You cannot get CSP unless the person for whom you care is getting CDP care component at the middle or highest rate or ADP daily living component. If your child has been away at school for four weeks or more, the care component/daily living component stops. This means your CSP entitlement stops.
    •In order to qualify for CSP, you have to be caring for the disabled person for at least 35 hours a week. If your child is away at school, you are unlikely to satisfy this rule. However, you can have some time off from caring and still be entitled to CA/CSP. See below for how this rule works.
Time off from caring
You can still be entitled to CSP during temporary breaks from caring. You can have a break from caring of up to four weeks in any period of 26 weeks (or a break of up to 12 weeks if either you or the person for whom you care is having treatment in a hospital or ‘similar institution’ for at least eight of the 12 weeks).1Reg 40 CA(CSP)(S) Regs If your child is away at school, you can probably make use of this rule to keep your CSP for the first four weeks they are away (unless you have already had a break in caring within the last 26 weeks, or your child’s care component stops before the end of the four-week period). See here for more on breaks from caring.
 
1     Reg 40 CA(CSP)(S) Regs »
If your child comes home temporarily
CDP care component/ADP daily living component is payable for the days your child spends at home (see here). You may also be able to get CSP for periods your child spends at home, provided you can show that you spend at least 35 hours a week caring for them. A ‘week’ for CSP runs from Sunday to Saturday.1Reg 2 CA(CSP)(S) Regs The time you spend caring does not have to be spread across seven days, provided it amounts to 35 hours in the period from Sunday to the following Saturday.
Time spent preparing for your child’s time at home and cleaning after they have gone can count as time spent caring for them – eg, any shopping or cooking that relates solely to the visit, and cleaning up afterwards, can count as caring.2CG/006/1990; para 60041 DMG
Example
Hamza is aged 10 and is at a residential school because of his disability. He is entitled to CDP mobility component at the higher rate and care component at the highest rate. Every few weeks he comes home for a long weekend. He comes home on Thursday afternoon and returns to school on Tuesday morning. When Hamza comes home for the weekend, the care component is payable for six days (Thursday to Tuesday – see the example on here). Hamza’s mother claims CSP for the time he is at home. She spends four hours preparing for his arrival on the Thursday and three hours cleaning up after he goes away on the Tuesday. While Hamza is at home, the care his mother provides is very intensive and includes being up for long periods during the night.
Provided Hamza’s mother can show she spends at least 35 hours caring for him between Thursday afternoon and Saturday at midnight (including the four hours preparing for his arrival), and again between Saturday midnight and Tuesday (including the three hours cleaning up), she should get CSP for two weeks.
 
1     Reg 2 CA(CSP)(S) Regs »
2     CG/006/1990; para 60041 DMG »
Carer element, carer premium or carer addition
If you get universal credit (UC), the carer element stops when you no longer have regular and substantial caring responsibilities for your child (see here). If your entitlement to CSP stops, the carer premium or carer addition in your income-related employment and support allowance, pension credit or housing benefit stops eight weeks after your entitlement to CSP stops.1ESA Sch 4 para 8(2) ESA Regs
PC Sch 1 Part II para 4(3) SPC Regs
HB Sch 3 para 17(2) HB Regs; Sch 3 para 9(2) HB(SPC) Regs
If you get CSP again, the carer premium/addition/element should start again and continue while you are getting CSP and for eight weeks after it stops again, unless you are on UC in which case you get the carer element while you have regular and substantial caring responsibilities for your child (see here).
When your CSP stops (and starts again), let the DWP and/or local authority know immediately to avoid overpayments and underpayments.
If you have lost entitlement to a benefit because the carer premium or carer addition has stopped being included in your applicable amount, you will usually have to claim UC instead if you were previously on a different means-tested benefit.
See Chapter 1 for more information about the carer element/premium/addition.
 
1     ESA Sch 4 para 8(2) ESA Regs
PC Sch 1 Part II para 4(3) SPC Regs
HB Sch 3 para 17(2) HB Regs; Sch 3 para 9(2) HB(SPC) Regs »