Is there a precedent for taking exH to court to support DD through uni?

[theredlion]

ExH and I were married for 10 years, DD was planned and loved.
Then when DD was 6 we split and he lost contact with her, despite my best efforts over the years he doesn't want to see her and she is heartbroken.

Getting maintenance has been a constant battle, the CSA now take maintenance from his wages, without question as he's been so difficult. He changes jobs and doesn't tell them frequently, the CSA have chased him via HMRC a few times.

I have felt for a long time that a court order may be better but I don't know.

DD wants to go to Uni next year, is there any way we can proceed so he makes a contribution to her Uni costs?

I don't believe there is, as she will be a grown adult and expected to make her own way in life.

I don't think that there is - in a similar situation, a friend of mine had to basically declare to the Uni that 'parents unwilling to support' in order to get a full maintenance grant rather than means tested. Your DD is presumably 18 and her fathers obligation to her under the law stops - I am so sorry he is such a shit

Given that her loan will be based on YOUR income not his, I doubt it. While he's clearly a shit, she will be able to access maintenance loans.

c3pu no she is expected to rely on her parents for finicisl support st uni.

Financial.

c3pu no she is expected to rely on her parents for finicisl support st uni.

But going to uni is totally optional and if either (or both) parent(s) is unwilling to support her financially through uni, she will have to take this into consideration before committing.

No she won't as the student loans are reduced if her residential parent doesn't contribute. Her mother not contributing isnot optiobal so it shouldn't be for her father either.

Sorry dodgy keyboard!

I am in my early 30s and my friend of the same age went to court with her Mum to get maintenance extended to cover the uni years.

c3pu no she is expected to rely on her parents for finicisl support st uni.

No. Loan is based on the income of the household the student lived in, not the combined incomes of separated parents. If the loan is less than the maximum there is a moral obligation to support the student, but not a legal one.

This article explains pretty well

www.fishermeredith.co.uk/site/blog/fm-blog/maintenance-for-children-in-higher-education

No. Loan is based on the income of the household the student lived in, not the combined incomes of separated parents. If the loan is less than the maximum there is a moral obligation to support the student, but not a legal one.

Yes - this thread is concerned with the legal precedent of taking the paying parent to court to contribute the costs of going to uni.

I think it's pretty fair to say it's obvious he isn't going to meet any moral obligations to the daughter here. If he can't/wont contribute to the costs, then he can't be made to.

Well, he can be made to, maybe.

c3pu - You are completely wrong regarding the legal precedent. Contrary to your statement it may be possible to make the father contribute to the costs. Support through the CSA will end when the OP's daughter finishes secondary education but the courts do have the power to extend maintenance to the end of a university degree. It does not happen very often but it does happen.

Usually if a consent order has been drawn up to support the child through tertiary education then it can be enforced.

However if that is not the case there is no legal method to force a parent to support a child through uni.

Martin Lewis of MSE is trying to get the government to be upfront that all the figures for student loans etc are calculated based on the parents providing a certain level of support but the government will not do this.
blog.moneysavingexpert.com/2016/11/11/uni-minister-jo-johnson-says-no-letter-asking-please-honest-transparent-parental-contribution/

You are completely wrong regarding the legal precedent. Contrary to your statement it may be possible to make the father contribute to the costs. Support through the CSA will end when the OP's daughter finishes secondary education but the courts do have the power to extend maintenance to the end of a university degree. It does not happen very often but it does happen.

Sorry I'll try and clarify - the point I'm trying to make is that the statutory obligations under CMS etc end at tertiary education (ie a levels, college).

After that while it may be possible to get a court order for maintenance to support further education there seems to be no clear precedent for it.

I've not been able to find any references for cases (admittedly with only 5 minutes of googling) that have succeeded, so it seems quite rare. If anyone has any info on cases that have succeeded I'd be quite interested in hearing about them.

Please will people only post definitive statements of what the law is only if they know what they're talking about?

As Prh and babybarrister say, it is possible under Schedule 1 of the Children Act.

Now, excuse me for a while as I go and proffer advice on brain surgery in the Health section.

Thank you everyone.

I'll speak to our solicitor and see what they have to say about DD's chances of getting a contribution from him.

Thank you familylaw that is very useful and has honestly made me cry.

It's been a difficult week because once again he's stopped making CSA payments and disappeared into the ether. From past experience I know it will be the summer at the earliest before they find him and get some money.

Thank you to everyone who told me how student support works, I knew that from DD1 who has graduated.

I will admit this is not just about money, I do feel aggrieved that 12 years ago he decided although didn't explicitly say this that he wanted no further part in DD2's life in any way and she is brilliant, anyone would be proud to have her as a DD.

Just wanted to say that you sound like a great mum to be supporting your daughter to get to uni without any backup. It

It sounds like it will be difficult to get support from your Ex regardless of legalities as he's already getting out of paying what's due. Would it be possible for your daughter to get a summer job to save up towards uni? Also loads of students have part time jobs while studying which helps a lot. Good luck to her.

I'm pretty sure XH either won't contribute, or it will at least be difficult to get him to contribute if DC go to university. I think that the relevant income being mine and my now DH is rather assuming that he is happy to contribute - as child maintenance is based only on the NRPs salary (which I agree with) why is the income for student loans purposes based on the joint income of the RP and their partner?