Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to (a) tackle the backlog and (b) reduce resolution times in outstanding Child Maintenance Service complaints.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on DWP meant that in July 2020, changes were made to our complaint model to allow staff to be deployed to support vital claim and payment processing work. This has meant that responses have not always been delivered within our target timescales.

We recognise the impact that delayed responses to complaints can have on our customers, and we have put a number of measures in place to address this issue, including allocating additional resource to our complaint resolution teams. As a result of this action, we have made strong progress in addressing the backlog of cases and improving resolution times for child maintenance complaints.

There are a number of more complex cases that will naturally take longer to allow for comprehensive investigation prior to being in a position to reach full resolution, for example those cases that are referred to our Financial Investigation Unit.

In these cases, we will contact the customer to let them know that their case is likely to take longer to resolve.