Child maintenance + nursery fees

[Blueeyes91]

I'm hoping someone can advise as I keep getting mixed info online.

CMS have told me my ex will be giving me £64 a week for our daughter. But I'm not 100% if that is supposed to cover nursery fees too?

My nursery bill a month is £780. If child maintenance is meant to cover nursery too. Then I am not sure I'm going to be able to keep up the nursery if I want to feed, clothe and house my daughter too.

Who knew leaving an abusive ex would mean you get to struggle financially on top of everything else.

That's all he has to give you. It's pathetic. Have you put in a claim for UC? They'll pay up to 80% of childcare fees depending on your income.

I have applied and they wont pay any of it. But after rent, bill, nursery, food and clothes for the little one who keeps growth spurting I'm barely managing each month.

It's alright for my ex, he's living in the home we bought together, paying less a month on the mortgage than I do on rent.

Oh that shit then. You might find this thread www.mumsnet.com/Talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/4373223-child-maintenance-childcare interesting.

You need to get the house sorted. If you own part of it he needs to buy you out, sell it, or move out so you child has a home. I bet he is telling you he is entitled to stay put is he?

He doesn’t have to contribute to childcare fees- it’s bullshit but there we are.

Yes that’s all he legally has to pay.

Unfortunately I'm having trouble getting him to sell. In fairness I'm having trouble with him generally. He's not seen her in weeks now as he's picked his new gf over the weekend with his daughter.

It's crazy how this system works and has me feeling super low.

If he has 50/50 contact he'd have to sort out the childcare on his time. Would that work for you?

Ah.. missed that he hasn't bothered seeing her the last few weeks so doubt he'd go for that

My ex decided that my child maintenance was to go towards nursery costs. I said no way, contacted the nursery and demanded they do separate invoices, splitting it 50/50 between me and him. This way, he is liable for the costs, and I can spend the maintenance on what it's meant for, eg. bills, food, etc.

I feel very angry about this and wonder why it's not something that's brought up more in the media; why are private school fees on child maintenance as a separate thing, whereas nursery isn't? Especially when as a working mum, dealing with the early years, returning to work and paying extortionate fees, the govt could easily calculate the lowest cost nursery and simply demand the other parent pay it. It's a travesty!