Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether an independent evaluation of the effectiveness of the Child Support Agency has been made since 2010.

The National Audit Office completed an independent review of the Child Maintenance Service in 2014. The final report, ‘Child maintenance 2012 scheme: early progress’ is published at http://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Child-maintenance-2012-scheme-early-progress.pdf.

There has not been an equivalent review of the Child Support Agency since 2010.

The Department will evaluate the effectiveness of the Child Maintenance Service in line with the ‘Child Maintenance Reforms Evaluation Strategy’, published at https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/387584/child-maintenance-reforms-evaluation-strategy.pdf.