Receiving child maintenance once child has gone to university ?

[Bernie54]

Hi, can I ask if anyone still receives child maintenance from their ex once the child has gone to university ?

My Daughter (18) goes to university in September, she lives full time with me atm, and will stay with me when she returns for the holidays. Our original maintenance agreement states to pay until 2028, with regular reviews etc.

AIBU to expect this to continue? At least in the holidays anyway? Anyone else in this situation. For context I’m a low earner. He is not.

Why not do the return to practise course. There's loads of options once your qualified again. Doesn't mean having to return to front lines of mental health

www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/career-planning/course-finder?field_leading_to_a_career_in_tid=3195&field_qualification_type_tid=All&field_study_mode_tid=All&field_region_tid=All&field_provider_name_tid=All

I don’t get paid x

If your daughter is disabled enough by her autism to receive pip is she going to cope with university OP?

As presumably she needs a lot of extra support to be independent?

Can any of the inviduals sayimg the payment ends explain why the Judge made the orfer to 2028 and how it no longer applies if it was not varied on appeal? How can you give advice if you have not seen the court order?

I am talking about in the holidays when she stays with me.

Support is in place via her EHCP and she also has a therapist. I don’t know if she will cope yet…she doesn’t just get PIP for autism.

Can you tell me where you studied matrimonial law please?

Why did the Judge make the order until 2028 then? When did you qualify as a solicitor?

It's the norm to just send the money directly
to dd when she is at university surely. Some nhs trusts pay a salary whilst return to nursing is completed, worth looking into. With dd at university, you can focus on your career again.

Hi, I'm a barrister specialising in family law and particularly matrimonial finance.
There's a limit to the help I can give without having seen your final order, but some general points:

1. The first step would be to look at the wording of the order regarding child maintenance. Usually you would expect it to say 'until the child completes secondary education' or 'until the child completes tertiary education' (i.e. throughout uni). It will depend what you agreed at the time (or the decision the Judge made if the order was not by consent but following a Final Hearing.)
2. Next, what was your ex earning at the time of the final order? The general rule is that any agreement regarding child maintenance set out in a court order is only binding for 1 year after the order was sealed. After that time, jurisdiction goes back to the CMS, and either party is free to make an application to the CMS (who may make a higher or lower assessment.) This does not apply if the paying party's income was over the CMS threshold (£156,000 per year gross) - the CMS would carry out a maximum assessment and then jurisdiction would revert to the Court. I raise this because regardless of what the order says, if your ex was earning less than £156k gross at the time of the order, he could only be held to the child maintenance set out in the order for a maximum of 1 year, which has now passed.
3. It sounds like you have a fairly amicable relationship with your ex and you are both motivated to ensure your daughter has what she needs. He may well want to financially support your daughter while she's studying anyway. It's worth talking to him about the possibility of a 'roofing allowance' which is a fairly common concept in family law - essentially, once the child goes to university, the paying parent continues the maintenance payment at the same level as before, but pays only 1/3 to the parent and the remaining 2/3 to the child. This is to reflect that the child will now be responsible for the bulk of their day to day costs, but that they will still live with you for the lengthy university holidays, and will have costs during that time. It may be he can see the fairness and sense in that, and volunteer to continue paying maintenance in that way while she completes her degree.

When she’s back in the holidays, she could send you some of her PIP (or wages if she’s going to get a part time job) to help with the food shop etc?

Sorry, having re-read your original message, I see you say 'Our original maintenance agreement states to pay until 2028, with regular reviews etc.'

Can I check whether the 2028 date is in reference to child maintenance/periodical payments, to spousal maintenance/periodical payments, or to global periodical payments?

If you have the precise wording of your order to hand I can be of more help.

Yes, but when you were not at your mum's she had to still pay for a home big enough to house you in the holidays, I suppose. That's what I don't really find fair here if both parents have agreed that DD lives with her mother.

The irony is that these student adults' entitlement to maintenance is based on the household income of the parent they lived with. They're adults unless it suits the government.

I think this is case what’s right/moral and what someone has to do.

He doesn’t have to contribute but I would think poorly of someone who refused to in these circumstances.

DH were in a similar position re: DSD. Both high earners vs her mum.

DH (with my full support - but he would have done this even if I disagreed and questioned the sort of person he was married to) continued support at the same level not just Uni but also a subsequent gap year.

The difference was he paid it directly to DSD with the express understanding that she would use this to pay her mum board during the holidays (which she did - but if she hadn’t he would have paid mum direct outside of term time).

He/we would have supported her if she spent most time living with us, so we couldn’t really see the difference just because she spent more time with mum as that was nearer to her friends.

I just don’t get people (especially high earners) who cut support once a child goes to uni.

He has a mind of his own at 16. His dad has been very abusive over the years and hasn’t behaved like a parent. Eg. Never been to parents evenings, wouldn’t take him to his clubs, doesn’t know the names of his friends, hasn’t attended his birthday parties. Has behaved in an abusive way to his current partner in front of our son. He has been arrested several times for domestic abuse against various women, which is clearly not setting a good example to our lovely sons. I think our son thinks that if he can’t even be bothered to support him financially then what has actually done to behave like a parent. He won’t pick him up from anywhere he needs a lift. He wouldn’t visit his brother when he was in hospital. The list goes on and on.

@letsbe to be clear - my point is general rather than referring to the specific court order (kimonolady has covered that point thoroughly).

I made point as there are people out there with an outdated view that a higher earning man is likely to be required to provide what is essentially spousal maintenance, long after children are grown. This is increasingly not common, sadly many lower earners become too reliant on child maintenance to prop up their household income and struggle later on when its no longer due.

It should go direct to your daughter

OP I’m confused by a lot of what you have said but legal advise is needed.

You get maintenance to help support taking care of your daughter as she lives with you but she is now not going to live with you and you want that support to continue? Why?

Your ex may be a dirtbag, but this isn’t the reason you aren’t still a nurse. It isn’t his ‘fault’ you have let your qualifications lapse especially as it’s been 10 years since you split. He shouldn’t pay for that lapse and under earning now - what are you going to do when the payments stop? I think irrespective of everything you need to consider this.

Also, you mention a lot your child is ND and has autism as a reason to have payments continue (because why else would you mention it as it isn’t legally relevant except you chose to stay at home) but is now able to independently live at uni without you. If your child is able to do this then you don’t need to stay at home or take a lower paid job.

The fact your ex and his new wife are high earners again has nothing to do with legally needing to continue to pay for maintenance of a child who no longer lives with you. It seems he has paid what is required at the right amount.

A lot of what you have said while important to you isn’t relevant legally.

I get that point actually and agree with you.

My mum downsized to a 1.5 bed maisonette as soon as I went to uni (she didn't have to, she was able to stay in our home until I finished uni but I guess she didn't want the running costs). It is 450sq ft. My dad had buggered off abroad at that point. I think she just didn't want me to come back 😂 and I only stayed for the first year (when in halls), then got a proper house share and never went back.
It's pretty wild thinking back and I just couldn't imagine doing that to my own kids.

My ex gave it directly to our daughter when she went to uni.

I thought the poster was asking for legal (admittedly from an rather unorthodox source) not our thoughts on spousal maintenance . I defer to Kimono lady who says wisely in my opinion she would need to see the order.

Lets hope the poster gets some legal advice.

Your ex should pay DD directly then perhaps you could suggest that DD makes a contribution from that when she is home from holidays. I assume she will also get a job during the hols?

@Daisy12Maisie Are you saying your child is saying he'll cut off contact with his Dad if Dad won't give him money to go to Uni and you're ok with this?

Is it a global maintenance order? Meaning it is both spousal and child maintenance combined. If that's the case then it continues until the date given (2028) irrespective of the child's educational status or age. And can only be varied by going back to court. If it were just for child maintenance then he could have stopped it after a year and reverted to CMS. But are you able to ask him what his plans are, or did you want to understand the legal situation first.