CMS age limit

[RhaenysRocks]

First of all , can I plead that we keep this thread focused on the issue at hand, not all the other myriad "what about x" issues with CMS.
Currently, CMS ends when a child is 18 or leaves full time FE (but not HE). Given that very few people are now able to be financially independent of parents until at least early twenties, especially with the current situation with rents, zero hours contracts, difficulties for young people to get full time, decent employment, AIBU to argue that the rules around CMS should change. The devil is in the detail of course, but realistically, many RPs will be hosting their adult children for 3-5 years longer than traditionally was the case. If the NRP is not willing or able to have them stay 50/50 should there be an obligation to continue to support them in that case, even if it was a direct payment to the child from whom the RP then elicits rent? I really don't want a bunfight or a "I left at 16 and never looked back". It's 2025, the world has changed and even the brightest, most driven kids are often still at home beyond the age of CB.

@SheilaFentiman they don’t disappear but the increase as I’ve agreed with in my replies to you and other comments. But the adult child could cover these costs… if they’re a student then council tax increase isn’t applicable anyway.

If they’re working (which they should be even whilst studying) then they can cover the increase in costs occurred by them being there. Which isn’t much more than what the resident parent would be paying to house themselves anyway.

Unless the adult child is taking 15 min showers 3 times a day or charging an electric car, utilities won’t increase that much so the adult child can cover those costs and food.

And mores the pity, I look back with great fondness at our "rising damp" style digs in the 80's with 60's furniture, peeling wallpaper, condensation running down the windows in the winter mornings and one of those lethal back firing gas water heaters. I had a clapped out mini made mainly of rust.

Carefree times of fun and youthful abandon.

In some instances this will end up being more than CMS ever charged the non-resident parent per month. It’s a joke.

No because custody isn't a thing. It's residency. It would be up to the young person obviously.

It’s the RP choice to continue to fully fund them.

The Adult child should be working even part time. Of course parents continue to help their adult children but it’s exactly that a choice. What the RP or NRP does is up to them still feels strange using the term RP for a grown adult mind.

Rather the house the adult is choosing to reside in happens to belong to one parent who’s kindly letting them live there and supplying meals and such while they are there.

If your adult child came home at 30/40 after a divorce penniless would you expect your ex to pay “child maintenance” because the child would be back home being supported by a parent?

YANBU, OP. I think the NRP has a moral obligation to help look after their child until they are truly independent and living outside of the family home. No idea how you'd manage that at a legislative level, but the number of people saying "the kid is 18 they should have no support from one parent" is so depressing.

Surely the resident parent is at an advantage as they now have an additional adult in the home who is old enough to share the bills and costs of running a household?

What about cases where 40 year old Gary never left home. Never flew the nest.

So presumably if the RP gets the young adult to move out they are then also giving them child maintenance until 25? That would be ridiculous and in many cases cause remaining children to suffer financially.
Also do you want CB to carry on until 25?

I hear you OP. I’m a single mother, DC are 20 and 18, one stays 2 nights a month at their dads and the other never goes. I pay pretty much everything for everyone, as their start of adulthood has gone in fits and starts and they need steadiness and reliability. Ex pays 50% of what he should do but as it’s only for a few more months it’s not a battle I need to take on.

Maybe it’s my own fault for not picking a decent man to have kids with all those years ago.

But if I can just keep going then in 5 years or so I think I may have adult kids that are independent and happy. And who have not heard me badmouth their dad.

My son is profoundly disabled and has EHC plan and may be in non advanced education until 25. The proposed benefit changes will mean disabled young people losing benefits to cover disability support between 20-22. It would seem sensible to me to extend CM for this group until at least age 22 where remain in higher of further education if one parent is expected to keep supporting the yp at home with all the costs that entails.

Many parents of dc with EHC plans can’t work full time or at all and are expected to take their dc to and from college if they can’t travel independently. So the govt does put expectations on parents they carrying on their parent role for disabled young people until 26.

i can’t see why the benefits bill should soar and single parents with a disabled child live in poverty while the absent parent doesn’t have to pay anything.

It is possible to claim extended CM through courts if you apply before your child is 18 and your child is disabled or going to uni but the courts only seem to do it where it’s a super wealthy family. Usually the parent carer is left in a really precarious position and a huge % live below poverty line which PIP cuts will make worse.

I do manage to work part time alongside caring and so had to make up the shortfall on my other dc student loans. Again why should ex not contribute when he can work full time with no caring responsibilities and earn more than me.

PIP is not for income it covers care and equipment and therapy it’s not supposed to be for basic living costs.

No

Child maintenance, like child benefit is not stopped at 18 if they are in further education. It's 20.

@Chaseandstatus sorry… their dad is still paying 50% of the previous maintenance amount for 2 adults and you think he is the problem??

Why aren’t your 18 & 20 year olds earning anything or contributing to their own costs?

To those saying "what about 40 yo Gary" I'm not saying limitless, just that 18 is no longer realistic. Even in the last 5 years the situation for young people looking for work is much worse. I know a 23 yo who has 16 hrs a week at Tesco's, has applied for dozens of other jobs, apprenticeships etc and he's not getting anywhere. Fortunately his dad supports him and had no intention of booting him out but his mum is long gone. It's fundamentally unfair that the gov does expect parental support to continue but only the RP is on the hook for it.

As a mum of 4 DC late teens /early 20s I whole heartedly agree. CMS should be paid until they graduate or finish an apprenticeship.
If this is too hard to administer then age should raise until 21 and perhaps between ages of 18-21 be paid directly to young person. Any responsible parent doesn't pull up the drawbridge at 18.

For higher education parents should support their dc directly not via their ex partner. You can’t make even resident parents fund university

Single mothers work 16 hours in Tesco and manage to support themselves and a child. A 23 year old living with his dad can't manage on £200 a week?

While I can see your point, we also need to be realistic.

We are talking about adults. Of course decent parents will want to ensure they give their child the best start in life, support them during those fledgling years, contribute towards university if relevant, provide a roof and food while they are finding work or earning a very low income. But I do t think it can be mandatory.

I think there will be a rethink on the proposed changes tbh in regards to those with severe disability ,my son has similar disabillities ,they are in a rather unique postion as there is no way they can get a job at 18 and support themselves it would be punitive to penslise them

So only adults who go to uni should continue to get CMS? Only the smartest. Not every teenager is going to university.

My ex paid them directly i should add, they had access to both houses and because they mostly were with me he voluntarily sent me £300 a month but should be voluntary because not all dc have same set up

I think YABU, young adults should be working alongside university, CMS is already payable until 20 while they study, that's long enough. I have been a single parent, got £5 a week from dosser exh, then our teen moved in with him and I had to pay quite a bit of my FT min wage so see it from both sides.

Im perfectly independent thanks, but they aren't
So focus on helping them to become so. What are their friends doing?

The vast majority of my friends' uni kids worked, even when they were able to support them, because the kids wanted to work and have a bit more pocket money anyway.

There definitely are jobs available for uni students. Some places better than others. This criteria should be part of the decision as to which uni to pick.

My understanding is CMS is only payable until 20 if they are in further education eg retaking a levels and not if they are in higher education such as university