Child maintenance nursery fee confusion

[Newlyseparate]

New poster
A recent post about nursery fees and child maintenance has concerned me

Husband left me and is initiating a divorce
60/40 childcare planned. Very early stages and I’m trying to get my head round things.

Children are in nursey, nursery won’t do split payment or accept children who attend every other week and husband needs childcare 5 days pw (on his week) so it makes sense for them to stay at current nursery.

His portion of the fees is more than his entire CM payment. Can I claim his portion of the childcare in addition? I can hardly afford my portion. If yes, how do I get this secured officially?
I assumed nursery fees would be similar to school fees and additional to CM.

He pays for his days and you pay for your days. I’m assuming you need 5 days a week so the bill would be 50/50. If you can’t afford that you’ll need to pull them out and find alternative childcare unfortunately, perhaps you can negotiate him paying extra if he wants to use the same childcare?

How is the childcare going to be split, will the child be doing a week at yours then a week at his? He needs to pay for any childcare on his days and you pay for the childcare on your days I think.
Maybe rethink the arrangement if the nursery can't be flexible with payments.

Will you be eligible for UC to help with your portion of the fees OP?

He pays for his days you for yours, nothing to do with maintenance. If the nursery will only bill one of you, then if you agree to receive the bill he pays in addition to cms

Your solicitor will need to advise you on this in the light of all the other circumstances - eg I earned more than my husband, we had a clean break, our court order says I pay school and university fees no matter with whom the children live. Every case is different. Plenty of higher earners pick up the whole of the childcare costs but that will need to be negotiated as part of your settlement.

I don't think that really what op is asking?

From what I gather, op doesn't need full time nursery, but has to if Dad needs hos weeks covered.

It sounds more like a 5050 childcare split. Op what does your schedule look like.

Can you do Monday Tuesday with Parent A
Wednesday Thursday with parent B then swap weekend ?

He has to pay CM. I’d ask him to sort his own childcare and say if he intends to keep dc in nursery you will make a contribution eg if you need 3 days a fortnight offer to pay 3/10th. It’s up for negotiation but I would make it clear you won’t be paying for childcare you don’t need.

Nursery fees aren’t covered by cms at all. You need to come up with an arrangement between you. He should pay for his days and you should pay for yours, seems the easiest way to split

Don't want to be bringing doom, but does he need 5 days and you don't because you're not FT?

Sorry for not being clear I need 4 days as do 9 in 10 days if that makes sense (so don’t work 1 day a fortnight and that’s on the week I have them). His work schedule varies so needs the full 5 on his weeks (to cover all potential shift patterns) . Nursery charge full time as they won’t accept ‘every other week’ schedules.
I can afford my 8 days a month but would struggle with more.
Sounds like I need to negotiate the nursery fees with him separately to the CM.
trying to keep costs down so avoiding solicitors as much as possible
thanks everyone for the advice

But you would need the nursery place for 5 days anyway if you were still together, or if he wasn't involved at all because nursery wouldn't allow 9 days in 10 anyway. So just bare that in mind when negotiating him paying extra, because I'm not sure your argument works to be honest.

Just seen your update, I think it would be fairer to split the childcare cost 50/50 in this senario because you are also needing 5 days worth of childcare a week. There are very few nurseries who would let you off paying that extra day every fortnight.
Hope the negotiations go well and you can come up with something amicable.

It’s just such a shame as he instigated the divorce and I worked 4 day weeks when we were together. I’m upping work since the split as couldn’t afford the bills otherwise (and I don’t need the day off on his weeks). It may not be worth my while only working 4 days if I have to pay 5 (which seems unfair on the children) but at least I know i don’t have to pay for his days out of the child maintenance

Yes. If he needs childcare then he must pay for it. It shouldn't form part of the maintenance.