Upper Tribunal Administrative Appeals Chamber

[2023] UKUT 193 (AAC)

Fecha: 21-Jul-2021

The manuscript worksheet dated 23 January 2018 in the supporting papers states that the student finance figures were

(b)

The manuscript worksheet dated 23 January 2018 in the supporting papers states that the student finance figures were:

“INPUT: WEF 3/9/17 (Student Year 17/18)”.

(c)

However, the calculations in the original computer-generated decision disentitling the claimant from 8 August 2016 to 3 December 2017 (see paragraph 24(a) above) suggest that the student finance was not taken into account between Monday 4 September 2017 and Sunday 3 December 2017.

Faced with that conflict, I prefer the evidence of the human being who made the decision. The idiosyncrasies of housing benefit management software are well known. Moreover, when the decisions were revised on 22 February 2018, the claimant’s entitlement was restored in part to Sunday 3 September 2017, but not thereafter. As at that date, it appears that claimant was entitled to housing benefit at the weekly rate of £55.80. There is nothing in the papers that explains why the claimant was not so entitled on the following day unless it be that the student finance had been into account.

(a)

taking into account the QMUL bursary of £1571 (see paragraph 19 above) as income for the academic year at the weekly rate of £37.40.