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Published: Friday, 09 August 2019 12:11

'You need a strategy and Child Maintenance requires urgent changes' says Government agency - Contact your MP

This is the main recommenation and criticism by the Social Security Advisory Council (SSAC) to the Goverment. The statutory agency was set up to advise the Government on complex areas of social security legislation. This was the first time that they looked at Child Maintenace from the perspective of paying parents. Their findings and recommendations are a damning inditement of a failure of successive goverments to develop a coherent strategy for separated families. No doubt the same criticism could be levelled at other departments such as the Ministries of Justice, Education, Health and others.

Last year FNF provided SSAC with oral and written evidence about the inadequacies of Child Maintenance and child related benefits. A group of FNF members also took part in a focus group to help researchers understand their experiences. Their report was published towards the end of last year. FNF welcome the report. It recommends that the Government provide housing support not just to the parent with more than 50% of parenting time, but to both parents providing care. It also highliths that unaffordable Child Maintenance assessments are pushing parents into poverty and recommends that the formula needs short-term changes and that the whole approach should be reviewed in the longer-term based on a strategy that has yet to be developed.

Furthermore, the report agrees with our observations over the last few years that the failure of Universal Credit (UC) to take into account Child Maintenance payments is creating disincentives to work, contrary to the whole principle undpinning UC.

The SSAC report says ‘We think there are some elements that the Department could consider more quickly…’ and

‘We would urge DWP to set out how it plans to make improvements in the short and longer term to improve the child maintenance formula, with a specific focus on its interaction with the social security system, to ensure it factors in the well-being and living standards of both parents and their children’

The short-term changes, that cannot wait for a long-term strategy, need to include:

• Reviewing payment thresholds and making these into sustainable allowances for the cost-of living for the paying parent - thresholds have not been adjusted for inflation since 1998!
• Meanwhile, removing 20% sur-charges from low-income paying parents struggling financially or on any state benefits, tax credits and Universal Credit.
• Ensuring that under Universal Credit ‘work always pays’ for parents who pay Child Maintenance.
• Providing Housing Benefit to both parents who provide care for their children.

Please help ensure that the Goverment takes action to introduce new legislation

Most of the changes needed require new legislation. Prior to the election, with a minority Government, this was almost impossible. Now that the Goverment has a majority they can no longer use that excuse. However, there are signs that, with a backlog of legislation, they may wish to kick this into the long-grass. We met with Baroness Steadman-Scott, the Minister responsible for Child Maintenace last year. The Baroness was keen to hear from FNF and our members about their experiences. We have written to her last week to highlight our concerns that, whilst developing a long-term strategy, the short-term needs of paying parents are urgent and should not be delayed. We have been reassured that the Minister will soon respond to our letter and that the Goverment will provide a written response to the SSAC report.

ACTION - Meanwhile, now is the time to bring to your MPs attention the recommendations of SSAC report and these key priorities using your own situation and experience. Please ask them to make representations on your behalf to the Minister and urge them to ensure that priority is given not just to long-term strategy, but your immediate needs.

You can find who your local Member of Parlaiment is here.

The full Social Security Advisory Committee report ‘Separated parents and the social security system’ are available online. Written submissions by FNF and other organisations have also now been published.

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