Should CM be considered as part of income

[SnowJon]

Should Child Maintenance be included when claiming benefits?

Example child maintenance is being paid to the resident carer. Why should that parent then be enabled to claim further benefits like Free school meals etc? Is that not what the cm is for?

The system is screwed in my eyes

An important change that should be made is both parents being liable for 50% of the childcare bill. If that happened you'd see more men working part-time or more women working full-time because the NRP will see that not working full-time is sometimes more financially savvy than paying for childcare. The part-time worker enables the full-time worker to maximise their earnings and enjoy the perks of being a parent without taking time off so that they can dash to appointments and school events in the middle of the afternoon.

I also supply all NRP holiday clothes (well all clothes) I also end up washing them all afterwards. My responsibility doesn’t seem to just cease for 2 weeks once a year.

I have teenagers now so they have phones, want to go out, driving lessons etc.

Ex gives me £30 a week for each of them. This covers the cost of their school and college meals and perhaps bus fare and absolutely NOTHING else
He doesn’t even have DD2 overnight anymore as she won’t sleep over but the money hasn’t increased for 10 years. He doesn’t even give them £1 pocket money

My first ex's partner resents the fact that he pays cm to me every month which to be fair he has done every month since we split. It's a shit amount considering the job he has but he did..not now..but he did used to go halves on other stuff like uniform or take them on holiday etc. His gf told me o was a scrounger and a money grabber and the nrp should never have to pay if the kids didn't live with them..she has a son by a dad who fucked off and never paid maintenance so I think she is massively bitter. Ive worked hard to keep a roof over my kids heads and im angry at this sort of attitude

The dad of the youngest 2 barely pays anything. Keeps walking out of jobs or phoning in sick with a bad back so I'd be stuffed if cm was deducted of my tax credits, I'm barely surviving on my full time minimum wage job as it is

I absolutely think it should be taken into account it is absurd that it’s not. I think it should be collected through the Tax system with the same penalties as non payment of tax.

All I read on hear is how bitter I am but from the sounds of it many of the RPs are bitter.

Give or take a couple of quid 400 is roughly paid a month for 2 children.

Now from a food and utility perspective are they going to cost 400 pound extra a month? I very much doubt that. Clothing? Again very much doubt that.

Do they do any clubs or activities? Music lessons are £200 per term per child

I think it should be. I think NRP pay far too much in CM. My DP pays £600 for his three DC. He has them EOW and once during the week. He pays for hobbies, school trips and various other things the DC want/need.

There's no way those DC cost £600pm. We have to pay for our own house/utilities/food etc so the DC have a place to stay when we have them so people who argue that we should be supporting the ex to run her home is BS.

Kids are all in school yet she works 20 hours pw. She claims benefits and has her DP living with her and he also financially contributes. The whole system is messed up.

No it should not. And thank goodness my ex doesn't think it should either. He pays me £500pm for one DS, I work part time and get tax credits.

Because he's not a cunt and he doesn't want to see the mother of his child (who does 80% of the childcare so he can work full time and earn £50k+) live in poverty while he goes on 5 or 6 holidays a year.

£400 for 2 kids is pretty low. That's £6 per day per child. When those children hit their teens that won't even cover their lunch. I get £320 for 1 DC, your dp must be on a pretty low salary.

@Butterflyone12e if she's claiming benefits then she's doing so illegally. You can't get single parent benefits if you are living with a partner!

I absolutely think it should be taken into account it is absurd that it’s not. I think it should be collected through the Tax system with the same penalties as non payment of tax.

The NRP has already been taxed on that money. How many people do you think get more than the personal allowance (£12,500) in maintenance?

Kids are all in school yet she works 20 hours pw. She claims benefits and has her DP living with her and he also financially contributes.

She won't get maximum benefits as she has a partner and his income counts as household income.

There's 13 weeks of school holidays plus random onset days. With NRP only having them EOW and one overnight during the week, how much do you think the holiday childcare costs?

It’s not bitter, it’s experience from our side. The actual reality not a hypothetical debate

For me, £400 would cover proportionally some of the outgoings I wouldn’t have if I didn’t have 2 children living with me

As a basic start, all of my rent and utilities combined including council tax: £1100 per month

from a basic standpoint, that covers 1/3 of the cost of standard of living with roof on our heads, heat water and electricity. I would cover the other 2/3.

No clothes included at this point.

I run a car. I do school and college runs every single day unless they get a bus. We live rurally. It’s an old car, nothing flash

Luxuries: Netflix, mobile phones, broadband

School dinners
School trips
School uniforms
Clothes shoes, underwear
Toiletries - I have girls. San pro, deodorant etc

I haven’t even added on food yet

There are no holidays

You would not in any part of the UK be able to live off £200 per person for a month for everything you need, even a child

No one is getting rich off £400pm maintenance for 2 kids

I can’t believe people begrudge supporting children for less than £10 a day

There is another one up thread flabbergasted that 3 kids cost £600pm

That is still £6 a day per child!

I get £4 a day per child, which is school dinner money only

£50 per day for childcare here and I know that on London it can be more than double that.

@Waxonwaxoff0

She means tax credits. But has said benefits

@Butterflyone12e My two DC easily cost me £600 a month.

As for the £400 @SnowJon

My 2 DC

2 x kids swimming lessons = £80
1 x kid dancing = £70-£100
Food for them £160 a month term time, around £30 per week extra for school hols
Clothing/shoes £60 per month
School trips + expenses £30 per month
School uniform £20 per month
Christmas and birthdays £60 per month
Trying to put something aside to entertain them on school holidays £20 per month
Childminders and holiday clubs £300 per month
Running the car to be able to get them to school/nursery/then me to where I need to be on time ~£200 a month
Presents for the million blinking birthday parties £15 a month
Haircuts £10 a month

That isn't including the fact I wouldn't have a 2 bed time if it weren't for them or the extra electric or extra water or the impact of having sole residency has on my work prospects. Nor does it include my lost income when they are ill yet again. I wouldn't have a car if it weren't for them.

it also doesn't include my daughter's private therapies/SEN related stuff of which dla pays the first £324 and I have to cover the rest of.

@PookieDo I'm still pretty sure that in a house with one full time worker and one part time worker they wouldn't be entitled to tax credits, or only a tiny amount. The tax credit cut off is about £23k. Unless the DP also only works part time.

Either way I bet that poster's DP hasn't offered to do 50/50 care or pay half the childcare costs so that their mother can also work full time!

Why are people looking at this as £400 in terms of just food and clothes? That is what is frustrating, to look after a child it is not as simple as that. It is also split between 2 children, it is only £200 each

Here is a list of things I pay for to support my children:

Gas, electricity, water, council tax, rent, travel to school/appointments, haircuts, toiletries, food, school food, school uniform, shoes, socks, pants, clothes, homework supplies (paper etc), books, bags, coats, trips, bedroom furniture, bedding, towels, running a washing machine, cleaning products, toilet roll, shampoo, toothpaste, shower gel, razors, sanitary products, pens, pencils, maths sets, breakfast, dinner, lunch, drinks, hairbrushes, leggings, jumpers, pyjamas, Christmas presents, birthday presents, other children’s birthday presents, party clothes, holding parties for their birthdays..............
Now older: driving lessons, mobile phones, college clothes, college shoes, college trips, college books (or iPad in my DD case) laptops for secondary school homework, a printer for homework, GCSE revision guides, tutoring, hobbies, art projects, my DD is allergic to SLS so has expensive products to use on her skin..........

Would you like me to carry on this isn’t a full list

If you have a child on a weekend you cannot really grasp what it is actually like Mon-Friday every week for 18 years in cost terms.
My eldest is 17 now and she’s had to have new beds when she has outgrown them and things like that too

My DD pays over £1400 for childcare a month. The dgd's father pays £140 a month maintenance, resents every penny yet presents himself as a decent man because he pays for his child. He sees it as unfair that he pays cm while DD gets child benefit. I would love to see nrps being forced to split costs 50/50 for childcare.

£200 a month for each child.
That's 46 a week.
My childcare bill is £44 a week in term time, more during holidays.
I'll ask you again op, how is what your partners ex gets or what his kids eat for lunch any of your business?
If 2 kids don't need £800 a month to survive, assuming your partners lousy contribution covers half, how much do you and your partner need? I'm sure 2 full time wages is enough.

Yeah in some ways.

My sister gets 900 from her ex a month!

I recieve 30 a month from my ex...if I'm lucky

@Worriedmum1511

Your breakdown is very interesting and highlights the issues when CM is thrown in the pot

After school clubs not a necessity
Christmas and Birthday presents should they not be funded by the mother and not NRP maintenance?
Entertainment?

@PookieDo and that's what gets the NRP goats up that is taking the piss alot of the stuff you have listed wont the NRP who is looking after them require bits as well.

@SnowJon I would argue swimming is a necessity and extra-curriculars for children who want to do them should be facilitated if financially possible.

My kids dad doesn't buy them Christmas or brithday presents so no, I will use his money to help contribute towards the cost. Besides my list is £1000+ so if you knock off the presents and the dancing and £400 still won't be half of it.