Just wondering if anyone has any help or ideas as how best to approach this situation from the side of all parties.
My DP has 50/50 care of his DDs, he also pays regular maintenance of £15 per week which is around the standard amount. When they are with us everything is covered for them being here, food clothes extras childcare afterschool clubs etc. They also agreed that he gets all the school uniform and shoes etc needed. Mum (DDs are 8&5) is a SAHM and had a partner that worked full time and supported their household. Me and DP both work full time and fund ours and my DD. All this has worked fine for years, maintenance and contact arrangements with only minor blips and is now a standard routine.
Mum has just split from her DP and now is being forced to start claiming full benefits for their household as breadwinner has gone. Fortunately, the house is rented in her name and is council/housing association.
She has asked if DP will drop his contact with DPs so that she is the clear main carer and so can claim full everything for the kids. Consequently and rightly this will increase his maintenance. Problem is, he doesn't want to reduce his contact, he likes having them as much as he does, the maintenance is neither here nor there and happy to up if necessary.
Does anyone have experience of claiming benefits and only 50% care of children? I mean she claims the child benefit for them so does it effect other benefits. I can see the motivation behind it but it seems a shame to cut contact with one parent for the sake of claiming benefits. I have suggested that he up maintenance anyway to plug the gap but still keep up contact but she wants to physically claim the benefits to be able to claim other things such as free school meals etc which again, valid point.
Would it be considered fraud if she claimed main carer but they still came to us 50% because that's what needs to be avoided I guess, we live in a relatively small community with a few nosey parkers.