Press Releases

Public Accounts Committee (PAC) compares Child Maintenance Service (CMS) to the discredited Child Support Agency (CSA)

FNF – both parents matter agree with the Committees recommendations for:
• A review of affordability and payment thresholds
• Clear cross-government governance for separated families
• Review of CM interacts with wider welfare issues
• Gain a better understanding of users of CMS
• Improved understanding of CMS being ‘played’ including the withholding of access to children
• Need for affordable assessments – that will reduce fraud so the real culprits can be dealt with
• Proactive approach to fraud (we agree, so long as the formula is affordable and fair)
• Fresh consideration of write-off of unaffordable debts
• A review of affordability and payment thresholds

We have long campaigned on the inadequacy of the systems for child maintenance. The House of Commons Committee of Public Accounts has published its report on Child Maintenance following their investigations, adding to widespread acknowledgement that Child Maintenance rules are unaffordable and inappropriate.

The Committee concludes that:
‘Ten years after reforms designed to improve child maintenance,
the Department for Work & Pensions is achieving no more for children of separated families
than under the previous, discredited Child Support Agency (CSA).’

Considering what a mess CSA was, this is a damning statement and, in our view, entirely predictable.

Resonating with our concerns and recommendations they say:

• “Serious constraints on parents’ ability to pay will inevitably hamper” any new DWP effort to collect maintenance or enforce the collection of arrears - with some Paying Parents facing a “poverty trap where there is little incentive for them to work more.”
  
  
• “In addition, some paying parents simply cannot afford maintenance payments, meaning enforcement is unlikely to result in any more maintenance actually being paid.”
  
  
• “Within one year [the DWP should], undertake a detailed review of how the child maintenance system interacts with the wider welfare and separated families environment, including whether further action to implement reforms or legislative changes are required.”
  
  
• The report also recommends that “in consultation with stakeholders, develop a strategy to tackle rising unpaid maintenance debt on its 2012 scheme, drawing on lessons learned from its experience of reducing CSA arrears, considering key barriers to compliance, such as affordability, and whether a write-off of uncollectable debt would be appropriate.”

Further, the Committee note in their report our evidence, published on their website:

 Families Need Fathers told us that “CMS is driving conflict amongst many parents to the detriment of their children.”

Chair of FNF, Paul O’Callaghan, says: “Families Need Fathers – because both parents matter welcome the Committee of Public Accounts picking up on how CMS is driving conflict in separated families. So far, despite multiple, authoritative reports¹ highlighting the flaws of Child Maintenance, the Government has failed to address serious deficiencies in the way that CMS works, not only resulting in unnecessary cost for the taxpayer, but often irreparably causing conflict between separated parents, which ultimately causes conflict when trying to resolve child contact arrangements. In particular, they have failed to ensure that their assessments are affordable and fair to both parents.

You cannot get blood out of a stone and we predict that the current cost of living crisis will hit children of separated families hard as more paying parents will struggle to meet unrealistic assessments. The time for DWP procrastination must now end. We urge the Government to implement the recommendations of this Committee, prioritise necessary legislation and report back next year.”

Most difficulties with child maintenance stem from a ‘winner takes it all’ formula that is often unaffordable and undermines shared parenting (one parent receives child related benefits and child maintenance, irrespective of income, even if care is split fairly evenly).

The Committee reports that “More than two-thirds of Paying Parents on Collect & Pay and over a quarter of those on Direct Pay say the payments are not affordable.”

Once these concerns are addressed the remaining issues will diminish as they are a consequence of the failure of existing legislation.

We have highlighted some of the key components necessary to create conditions for such a strategy. There is now a public health crisis for children of separated families. There is a need for focus on effective child support mechanisms, education, Early Intervention to keep people out of court and out of CMS, integration with other departments such as Education, etc as identified in our paper ‘A Strategy for Separated Families’,

 See the Committee's summary report here and full report here.

References:

¹ CSJ - The Hidden Parent Poverty Trap: Child Maintenance and Universal Credit – March 2019
   SSAC Occasional Paper 22: Separated parents and the social security system – 22 October 2019
   National Audit Office – Child Maintenance Report – 3 March 2022

22^nd June 2022

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For immediate release - Thursday 03^rd March 2022

National Audit Office Publish Report on the Value for Money of Child Maintenance Service

6 out of 10 parents with Child Maintenance debt did not earn enough to be charged income tax or had no income

NAO accept that there is an affordability issue and make an unprecedented recommendation to review legislation

FNF’s view is that until the Government have a cohesive strategy for separated families and until Child Maintenance is affordable and fair:

• Arrears will continue to escalate

• Family conflict will escalate

• Children will be harmed

Today (3rd March 2022) the National Audit Office (NAO) published their report into value for money of the Child Maintenance Service (CMS). FNF are credited with our contribution to NAO's investigations. The report can be downloaded here.

The CMS service costs taxpayers £322m a year. At a cost of 36p for every pound received by parents, it represents poor value for money.

FNF welcome NAO’s key, unprecedented, recommendation that DWP assess affordability and report to Parliament on whether new legislation is necessary. Contrary to popular belief about parents avoiding their financial responsibilities towards their children, the NAO reports that almost two-thirds (62%) of paying parents with Child Maintenance (CM) arrears have incomes below the tax threshold. As FNF have been saying for many years, there is a problem of unaffordable assessments under a fundamentally flawed Child Maintenance formula. The NAO also identifies that payment thresholds/bands have not been reviewed for inflation since 1998 and ‘can conflict with wider aims of the welfare system’.

We note that in 2019 the Social Security Advisory Committee (SSAC1), a statutory government agency, identified key flaws in CM legislation and recommended that that the government address the lack of a ‘clear strategy for separated parents’. We agree with this. Unfortunately no such strategy has been developed. 

FNF urge the Government to formulate a coherent strategy for separated families and urgently make parliamentary time to amend legislation. That legislation must ensure:

• Assessments are affordable
• Assessments fairly reflect shared parenting
• Assessments are formulated to promote involvement of both parents in both caring and financial responsibilities for their children.
• An end the ‘winner takes it all’ approach to minimise conflict and weaponisation of Child Maintenance.
• An end the 20% surcharge (4% to receiving parents) for those who are on low incomes/benefits.

Until these fundamentals are addressed, CMS will continue to fail and Child Maintenance arrears will continue to grow. No matter how much enforcement measures are strengthened, it is not possible to get blood out of a stone. NAO observes that CM arrears are increasing by £1 million a week and will reach £1 billion by 2031. FNF consider that this estimate is conservative as it does not take into account the effect of inflation between now and then on affordability.

There is no tangible evidence of these issues being addressed by DWP. By integrating the formula for Child Maintenance into primary legislation, Parliament have made it impossible to even make sensible annual adjustments based on inflation, without changing the law – even when that law makes no sense. New legislation must be properly formulated – the present law is not.

Chair of FNF, Paul O’Callaghan says:

“We welcome the National Audit Office’s report on value for money of CMS, particularly in relation to addressing legislation in relation to affordability of assessments. Children need the love and care and financial support of both parents. The NAO report is a damning indictment on the failure of the Government to create legislation that does more good than harm. Tens of thousands of parents are falling behind with their child maintenance payments, not because they won’t pay, but because they can’t. The NAO report comes as Minister of State for Justice, Dominic Raab MP, has called for radical ideas to take parents out of family courts. The issues of Child Arrangements after family separation and Child Maintenance are often inextricably linked. The US Congress identified that involved parents also contribute more to the upkeep of their children . A coherent policy that places as much store on supporting and enforcing shared parenting arrangements as on financial provision will pay dividends. Current policies fail to do this and fuel conflict.”

For further information, quotations from our service users or infographics please contact us by email at media@fnf.org.uk or leave a message on 0300 0300 110.

Further information on our views on CMS and other aspects of family justice see our Strategy for Separated Families and Protection of Children and Adults.

SSAC Occasional Paper 22: Separated parents and the social security system – 22 October 2019

Notes for editors:

Families Need Fathers - because both parents matter

FNF is the leading registered UK charity providing information and support on shared parenting issues arising from family breakdown, and support to divorced and separated parents, irrespective of gender or marital status. FNF is NOT a fathers' rights group - we support the best interests of children - namely mature and collaborative parenting by both parents - an objective which is inadequately promoted in the family court system and associated services.

FNF receive approximately 25,000 calls a year to our Helpline and thousands more rely on our local branch network and online support.

Our primary concern is the maintenance of the child’s meaningful relationship with both parents. Founded in 1974, FNF helps thousands of parents every year. 

ENDS

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Welcome to our 2^nd June Newsletter.

Parliamentary Committee report, published today, says:

'10 years after reforms designed to improve child maintenance, the Department for Work & Pensions is achieving no more for children of separated families than under the previous, discredited Child Support Agency (CSA).’ 

Considering what a mess CSA was, this is a damning statement and, in our view, entirely predictable.

FNF – both parents matter agree with the Committees recommendations for:
• A review of affordability and payment thresholds
• Clear cross-government governance for separated families
• Review of CM interacts with wider welfare issues
• Gain a better understanding of users of CMS
• Improved understanding of CMS being ‘played’ including the withholding of access to children
• Need for affordable assessments – that will reduce fraud so the real culprits can be dealt with
• Proactive approach to fraud (we agree, so long as the formula is affordable and fair)
• Fresh consideration of write-off of unaffordable debts
• A review of affordability and payment thresholds

We have long campaigned on the inadequacy of the systems for child maintenance. The House of Commons Committee of Public Accounts has published its report on Child Maintenance following their investigations, adding to widespread acknowledgement that Child Maintenance rules are unaffordable and inappropriate.

Resonating with our concerns and recommendations they say:

• “Serious constraints on parents’ ability to pay will inevitably hamper” any new DWP effort to collect maintenance or enforce the collection of arrears - with some Paying Parents facing a “poverty trap where there is little incentive for them to work more.”
  
  
• “In addition, some paying parents simply cannot afford maintenance payments, meaning enforcement is unlikely to result in any more maintenance actually being paid.”
  
  
• “Within one year [the DWP should], undertake a detailed review of how the child maintenance system interacts with the wider welfare and separated families environment, including whether further action to implement reforms or legislative changes are required.”
  
  
• The report also recommends that “in consultation with stakeholders, develop a strategy to tackle rising unpaid maintenance debt on its 2012 scheme, drawing on lessons learned from its experience of reducing CSA arrears, considering key barriers to compliance, such as affordability, and whether a write-off of uncollectable debt would be appropriate.”

Further, the Committee note in their report our evidence, published on their website:

Families Need Fathers told us that “CMS is driving conflict amongst many parents to the detriment of their children.”

We welcome the Committee of Public Accounts picking up on how CMS is driving conflict in separated families. So far, despite multiple, authoritative reports¹ highlighting the flaws of Child Maintenance, the Government has failed to address serious deficiencies in the way that CMS works, not only resulting in unnecessary cost for the taxpayer, but often irreparably causing conflict between separated parents, which ultimately causes conflict when trying to resolve child contact arrangements. In particular, they have failed to ensure that their assessments are affordable and fair to both parents.

You cannot get blood out of a stone and we predict that the current cost of living crisis will hit children of separated families hard as more paying parents will struggle to meet unrealistic assessments. The time for DWP procrastination must now end. We urge the Government to implement the recommendations of this Committee, prioritise necessary legislation and report back next year.

ACTION 1: If you are affected by the issues raised here, please contact your Member of Parliament. Keep it brief and:

• Share your experience.
• Draw their attention to this report and the three others¹ published in the last 3 year that have been largely ignored (see links below).
• Ask your MP to contact the relevant Minister(s) and urge them to address the concerns of these reports without further procrastination.
• Suggest that your MP contacts us for further information at info@fnf.org.uk.

You can find contact details for your MP here.

Further Comments
Most difficulties with child maintenance stem from a ‘winner takes it all’ formula that is often unaffordable and undermines shared parenting (one parent receives child related benefits and child maintenance, irrespective of income, even if care is split fairly evenly).

The Committee reports that “More than two-thirds of Paying Parents on Collect & Pay and over a quarter of those on Direct Pay say the payments are not affordable.”

Once these concerns are addressed the remaining issues will diminish as they are a consequence of the failure of existing legislation. The Department of Work and Pensions are now considering curfews for parents who fall behind on payments. They continue to fail to recognise that more enforcement action in relation to unaffordable and unfair assessments does not work. DWP need to note that when 'in a hole, stop digging'!!

We have highlighted some of the key components necessary to create conditions for such a strategy. There is now a public health crisis for children of separated families. There is a need for focus on effective child support mechanisms, education, Early Intervention to keep people out of court and out of CMS, integration with other departments such as Education, etc as identified in our paper ‘A Strategy for Separated Families’,

See the Committee's summary report here and full report here.

References:

¹ CSJ - The Hidden Parent Poverty Trap: Child Maintenance and Universal Credit – March 2019
   SSAC Occasional Paper 22: Separated parents and the social security system – 22 October 2019
   National Audit Office – Child Maintenance Report – 3 March 2022

ACTION 2:
Please share this on social media, re-Tweet ours, use hasthags #ChildMaintenance #CMS when posting your comments. Share our Facebook post too.

Also, if you see media with lazy or deliberately, one-sided reporting of the Committee's findings and recommendations (we have seen one already), do contact them to highlight this and send them a link to our Press Release.

With best wishes,

The Team at FNF

22^nd June 2022

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Ministry of Justice publish
Family court statistics quarterly: January to March 2022 today (30^th June 2022)

Private law family case delays at a new all-time high of 46 weeks
Case duration has more than doubled in five years 

Proceedings are not on a child-appropriate timescale, harm children and fuel family conflict

Family courts were not fit-for purpose before Covid-19
and efforts to address the pandemic backlogs have failed

The whole system needs to be re-designed 

Our service users told us this month:

"I had to wait 2.5 years for final hearing and 7 months for a 1 hour directions hearing!" 

"I waited nearly 12 months before my first hearing"

"I’m still waiting for a final hearing and it’s been 2 years so far"

"There has been 7 adjournments and two vacations amounting to more than 12 months in delays all because mother claims to be unwell just before each hearing”

"I waited 4 months for first hearing"

 "11 months for directions hearing - still hasn’t happened"

"Waited 9 month for my first hearing, mother didn’t turn up also, have to wait a further 4 months for the next hearing."

Each of these accounts is a personal tragedy. It is a tragedy for the applicant parents, but above all it is a tragedy for the children in whose name the Family Courts sit. Such delays do not serve the best interests of children - they contribute to harm and result in children losing completely their relationships with much loved parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, half-siblings and other family members and close friends who had close attachments with them. We can put media representatives with these parents to hear their accounts first-hand (they may require anonymity of reporting due to being in court proceedings).

This morning the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) published their most recent report Family Court Statistics Quarterly: January to March 2022 today ^[1].

The latest data shows that Private Law cases, on average, have increased in length since the last quarter from 44.3 to 46.2 weeks, double what it took five years ago and getting worse every quarter. The Covid-19 has clearly been a major factor, increasing times by 20 weeks, but in reality, the figures were getting worse since 2017 and cases now take 25 weeks longer than five years ago. Changes in legal aid in 2012 have also resulted in the proportion of litigants with representation having from 59% to 29% - no-doubt adding to delays, numbers of hearings and stress on all parties involved.

Furthermore, at the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass) open board meeting of 28th April 2022 it was reported that the average time taken for Private Law cases that go beyond a first has increased to 54 weeks and the ones involving the appointment of a Children’s Guardian, have increased from 92 to 94 weeks* in the last quarter! ^[2] Cafcass also report that there are approximately 7-8,000 more children in the system than pre-covid, with anticipated 'suppressed demand' forecast to by MoJ to result in an increase of caseload potentially over 10% in 2022/23.

Oral evidence this week (27^th June 2022) to the House of Lords Children and Families Act 2014 Committee^[3] from the President of the Family Division, Sir Andrew McFarlane and CEO of Cafcass, Jacky Tiotto, did not inspire confidence that acceptable solutions are being developed.

Sir Andrew said "Since Covid started, the amount of resource that has been put into family justice has gone up by about 25% in terms of sitting days; we measure what judges do by how often they sit. Yet the output of the system, the ability of the system to complete cases, has gone down in that it now takes more hearings per case to get to the end of it."

Jacky Tiotto said: "We have a backlog now of about 7,000 children that we did not have before March 2020. We do not have a solution for that."

Ms Tiotto agreed with Lord Mawson when he said:

"I keep hearing that it is going to cost money and we need more and more money. What thought is going into the fact that as a country there may not be more money? The world where there was going to be more money may no longer exist. It is a bit like the crisis of Covid. We keep weeping about it. I would like some thought about what we are going to do to engage with a world that is now going to be quite challenging about that. In my world, it is about innovation and new thinking because there may be some realities there."

For the system to be fit-for-purpose, it needs to be re-designed to promote out-of-court resolution and investigations of contested facts and serious allegations need to take place within a few weeks rather than months or years. It seems unlikely that the Government will pump tens of millions of pounds to address the current situation. Even if they did, it would take a long time to recruit more judges and Cafcass Family Court Advisers.

The status quo is unacceptable and so there is an urgent need to review procedures and legislation:

• to simplify the system
• create the conditions to promote out-of-court agreements
• to reduce incentives to game the system

See further details of our vision of the elements of such a review in our paper ‘A Strategy for Separated Families’.

Chair of FNF, Paul O’Callaghan says: “Waiting and hoping for things to get better is not an acceptable option as the family justice system lurches from dreadful to frightful. The scale of the crisis must not be under-estimated with 83,000 children caught-up in wholly scandalous delays that harm children and fuel damaging family conflict, cost to the parties and taxpayers. The latest oral evidence by the President of the Family Division and CEO of Cafcass demonstrates that tinkering at the edges will not make a material difference. The process of family justice must be urgently reviewed and in the meanwhile action taken to remove incentives for vengeful, angry parents to game the system to the detriment of their children. These delays, fracture, often irreparably, a once loving relationship between a child and half of their family, leading to all too frequent lifetime trauma for the child. We call on the MoJ to meet with us to discuss what has become a national crisis.'

For further information, quotations from our service users or infographics please contact us by email at media@fnf.org.uk or leave a message on 0300 0300 110.

Notes for editors:
Families Need Fathers - because both parents matter
FNF is the leading registered UK charity providing information and support on shared parenting issues arising from family breakdown, and support to divorced and separated parents, irrespective of gender or marital status. FNF is NOT a fathers' rights group - we support the best interests of children - namely mature and collaborative parenting by both parents - an objective which is inadequately promoted in the family court system and associated services.

FNF receive approximately 20,000 - 25-000 calls a year for help a year and thousands more rely on our local branch network and online support.
Our primary concern is the maintenance of the child’s meaningful relationship with both parents. Founded in 1974, FNF helps thousands of parents every year.

^[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/family-court-statistics-quarterly-january-to-march-2022
    Family Court Tables: October to December 2021 - Table 2, 9 and 11 and MoJ commentary

^[2] Board meetings and reports - Cafcass - Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service – 28^th April 2022
    Chief Executive Officer’s Report - 28^th April 2022

^[3] Children and Families Act 2014 Committee oral evidence transcript: Children and Families Act 2014 - Monday 27^th June 2022 - evidence from Rt Hon Sir Andrew McFarlane, Jacky Tiotto and Steve Crocker OBE (please note that neither Members nor witnesses have had the opportunity to correct the record at this time, but the proceedings can be viewed on Parliament TV here).

ENDS

30^th June 2022

* Since this press release, Cafcass have stated, at their open board meeting of 17^th July 2022, that these private law case are now averaging 99 weeks!

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FNF Press Release - Monday | 25 | April 2022

International Parental Alienation Awareness Day

 With the cost of Family Breakdown to the UK economy estimated to be in excess of £51bn¹

The Family Court system is not fit for its primary purpose of protecting the long term welfare of children when families separate

Parents are increasingly being forced to rely on courts to make the simplest of court arrangements due to intractable disputes
– our newly published survey highlights the most common poor post-separation parental behaviours

Our members are reporting increasing cases of alienating behaviours, which we believe is encouraged by a failing system which sees children as little more than chattels of a broken marriage

Case duration has doubled in four years and is close to a year (on average) to reach conclusion -almost 2 years in cases involving a Cafcass guardian²
such delays simply add to family conflict and enable cases to become intractable

On this another tragic anniversary of ‘Parental Alienation Day’ we call all agencies, and parents in the family court system to:

1. place the children first, and know that a safe loving relationship with both parents post separation should be the minimum children should expect.

2. accept that parental alienation exists and enshrine into law that perpetrating alienating behaviour is domestic abuse
and damaging to the long term welfare of children

3. recognise the large-scale public health damage to children of separated families

4. put an end to the adversarial justice system and develop a coherent strategy for the benefit of children from separated families
with education and early intervention at its core

25th April, is designated International Parental Alienation Awareness Day. FNF carried out a survey of our service users asking them to identify the key alienating behaviours that they have experienced.

Our report identifies examples of harmful post-separation behaviours and suggests alternatives and ways forward.  Download the report here: 

The top five where frequent features of two-thirds or more of respondents:

1. Preventing, discouraging or interfering with ex partners’ parenting time
2. Removing photographs of parents
3. Expressing negative emotions to child about a parent
4. Discouraging child from marking special days - Father’s/Mother’s Day, Birthday, etc
5. Over-emphasising with any negative comment about other parent

The detailed examples provide insights in themselves as to the lengths many parents go to in order to exclude their ex partners to their and their children’s lives and how oblivious they can be to the harm it can cause.

Chair of FNF, Paul O’Callaghan says: “Parental alienation’ is a catch-all term, but behind it are specific examples of damaging alienating and bad parenting as the FNF survey reveals. With 84,000³ children a year being subject to private family court proceedings, the harm being done amounts to a public health crisis. Family courts need to grasp the nettle, address difficulties as soon as they arise, before conflict escalates. The failure of family justice to address such abusive behaviour in weeks rather than years is a national scandal. A full review of support for separated families is also essential, starting with education and support rather than an adversarial system of family justice. Tens of thousands of children are losing out on the love of good parents and half of their extended families, at great cost to their future mental health."

Case Law, Childcare Professionals, and CAFCASS all recognised that Parental Alienation has a real detrimental impact on children, and as our membership and those seeking our support is showing that is now extending to grandparents and wider family members.

Enforcement of ‘contact orders’ made in children’s best interest remains around just 1% making them little more than ‘contact suggestions’, leading to the making of repeat court applications the norm and adding to delay and conflict.

FNF believe that there is an urgent need for a wholesale review of family justice to focus on education and Early Intervention as identified in our paper ‘A Strategy for Separated Families’.

For further information, quotations from our service users or infographics please contact us by email at media@fnf.org.uk, or leave a message on 0300 0300 110.

¹ Centre for Social Justice - https://www.centreforsocialjustice.org.uk/about/the-five-pathways/family
² FNF Family Court Delays - Latest MoJ Data - Press Release - 31^st March 2022
³ Family Court Tables: October to December 2021 - https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/family-court-statistics-quarterly-october-to-december-2021

Notes for editors:
Families Need Fathers - because both parents matter
FNF is the leading registered UK charity providing information and support on shared parenting issues arising from family breakdown, and support to divorced and separated parents, irrespective of gender or marital status. FNF is NOT a fathers' rights group - we support the best interests of children - namely mature and collaborative parenting by both parents - an objective which is inadequately promoted in the family court system and associated services.

FNF receive over 20,000 calls for help a year and thousands more rely on our local branch network and online support.
Our primary concern is the maintenance of the child’s meaningful relationship with both parents. Founded in 1974, FNF helps thousands of parents every year.

ENDS

25^th April 2022

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