I am a non-resident parent who, like many others, is required to make child maintenance payments calculated by the Child Maintenance Service (CMS). The current system calculates these payments based on a percentage of our gross income. This method does not accurately reflect our take-home pay or consider the essential living expenses we must cover.

The CMS's approach overlooks key expenditure such as rent, utilities, travel to work, and food. These are all crucial costs that significantly impact our net income - the actual amount we have available for child support payments.

I propose a reform in CMS calculations from gross pay to net pay. This change would provide a more accurate reflection of what non-resident parents can genuinely afford without compromising their own basic needs. Additionally, we urge for the inclusion of affordability assessments in these calculations. Such assessments would take into account necessary expenditures like housing and food costs.

My current monthly contribution for 1 child is £414 per month, to feed, house and clothe them. If my current partner and I choose to have another child, my monthly contribution reduces by £14. I ask, how is the child that lives with me worth less than the child that does not?

This proposed reform is not about shirking responsibilities but ensuring fairness and sustainability in child maintenance arrangements. It's about making sure that both resident and non-resident parents can adequately provide for their children while also maintaining their own livelihood. Too many people are being pushed to financial ruin and worse by the way that the CMS operates. 

From my own personal dealings with them, I know first hand that there is no help for paying parents who struggle to meet the payments expected of them. 

The system is broken and needs urgent reform.

Please join us in calling for this much-needed change in how CMS calculates child maintenance payments. Sign this petition today!