Is there any way to claim additional costs extra to child maintenance?

[sandcastlesunshine]

Also posted in lone parenting but thought you legal bods might know other ways?

Single parent to 2DC. Eldest going to High School this year. Uniform etc will cost £300 and bus fares etc will add about £60 to every month. (Plus new uniform for younger DC at about £150?).

Exh pays CM £20 a week. He doesn't buy any clothes, belongings, school dinners - well anything. He says he gives me enough money and I'm not getting a penny more. That £20 doesn't actually even pay for their school dinners.

Is it silly of me to think there is something out there that will enable me to ask that he contributes more to their lives?

CM is based on the nrp's income. £20/week is low - is he actually very poor or is he hiding income?

If he is actually poor there's not much you can do but otherwise you need to gather information about his real income. It is irrelevant what you need money for - if the dad was a merchant banker with a £200kpa salary you would get way more cm than you would really honestly need and if the dad has literally no income you would get nothing. Some people are rich and some are poor, that's capitalism, cm makes sure that the child of a wealthy parent shares some of that wealth and (unless compensated for by the other parent) the child of a poor parent shares some of that poverty.

it is possible to make a claim under Schedule 1 Children Act 1989 but it is not straightforward.

This article sets out some of the problems.

As a first step you should propose mediation anyway, and perhaps when he actually sees the figures it might start to dawn on him that £20 a week is not enough. But it might be a lot of effort by you for relatively little gain.

He is really that poor. Neither of us can afford mediation. He isn't interested in negotiating, he says he "gives me enough of his money". He's always making out he can't even afford to feed himself (yet owns numerous electrical gadgets and travels by taxi?).

Is the £20 the CMS determined minimum? In which case he's under no obligation to provide any more.

Yes it is. Sadly I thought this was the case, I thought I would check with you wise people. I just thought there could be a way. £20 a week is nothing (not ungrateful, it just seems very unfair).

unfortunately there is no law preventing people from being selfish twats.

Traviata I think you have described him perfectly!