Asked by: Susan Murray (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) paying and (b) receiving parents use the Child Maintenance Service Collect and Pay service; and how many (i) paying and (ii) receiving parents will move onto that service as a result of proposed changes.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
As of the end of September 2025, there were 317,100 Receiving Parents and 303,800 Paying Parents using the Collect & Pay service.
It is proposed to reform the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) when Parliamentary time allows to create one streamlined service where the CMS would collect and transfer all maintenance payments.
The precise number of paying and receiving parents who would move into a new streamlined service would depend on a number of factors including the size caseload at the time of implementing the proposed reforms and the choices made by customers.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, who is responsible for registering liability orders with Registry Trust Limited.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) does not require a justice of the peace to issue a summons before making an application for a liability order.
When seeking a liability order, the CMS writes directly to the paying parent to inform them of the intention to apply. This communication includes the outstanding debt amount, along with the court location and the date of the hearing.
Use of such powers may have an impact on a parent’s future ability to pay. These powers are therefore only used in circumstances where the CMS believes the parent can pay but is refusing to do so. In such circumstances these powers will have a deterrent effect and as such the numbers are expected to be low.
The CMS is committed to using these powers fairly and in the best interests of children and separated families.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, in the past year what has the average time been for the Child Maintenance Service to obtain a verified address for a paying parent once a caseworker identifies that one is missing; and what processes are in place to minimise delays where child maintenance arrears are accruing.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government is committed to ensuring parents meet their financial obligations to their children. Where a paying parent fails to take responsibility for paying their child maintenance and cannot be traced, the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) will take immediate action and do everything within its powers to trace the paying parent. In addition to information provided by parents, CMS undertakes a series of trace checks to verify the paying parent’s address. These checks draw on several approved information sources, including; cross government databases, real time information from HM Revenue & Customs, credit reference agencies, employers and Local Authorities.
The CMS have a range of strong enforcement powers that can be used against those parents who consistently refuse to meet or evade their obligations to provide financial support to their children. We are committed to using these powers fairly and in the best interests of children and separated families to ensure compliance.
The statistical information requested in not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps the Child Maintenance Service takes to (a) verify and (b) obtain up‑to‑date addresses for paying parents in cases where enforcement action cannot proceed due to the absence of a confirmed address.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government is committed to ensuring parents meet their financial obligations to their children. Where a paying parent fails to take responsibility for paying their child maintenance and cannot be traced, the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) will take immediate action and do everything within its powers to trace the paying parent. In addition to information provided by parents, CMS undertakes a series of trace checks to verify the paying parent’s address. These checks draw on several approved information sources, including; cross government databases, real time information from HM Revenue & Customs, credit reference agencies, employers and Local Authorities.
The CMS have a range of strong enforcement powers that can be used against those parents who consistently refuse to meet or evade their obligations to provide financial support to their children. We are committed to using these powers fairly and in the best interests of children and separated families to ensure compliance.
The statistical information requested in not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Susan Murray (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much revenue was generated from fees charged under the Child Maintenance Service Collect and Pay scheme in 2024-25; and what estimate she has made of the total annual revenue expected to be generated by the proposed (a) 2% fee on standard Collect and Pay payments and (b) 20% fee on non-compliant payments.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The table below shows collection fees received in financial year 2024-25.
Collection fees | 2024/2025 |
£000 | |
(a) Paying Parent Collection Fees Received | £56,993 |
(b) Receiving Parent Collection Fees Received | £11,141 |
(a+b) Total Collection Fees Received | £68,134 |
The information requested on the total annual revenue expected to be generated by the proposed (a) 2% fee on standard Collect and Pay payments and (b) 20% fee on non-compliant payments is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many cases in the last three years involved child maintenance payments being incorrectly refunded to the paying parent due to clerical error; and what steps the Department is taking to reduce such errors.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
This information is not readily available and providing it would incur disproportionate cost.
The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) works to ensure cases are kept up to date and payments are processed accurately, with controls in place to minimise incorrect refunds. The introduction of the View Parent Finances screen further improves clarity and compliance by giving caseworkers a clearer, simplified view of complex financial information.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether a justice of the peace is required to issue a summons before the Child Maintenance Service makes an application for a liability order.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) does not require a justice of the peace to issue a summons before making an application for a liability order.
When seeking a liability order, the CMS writes directly to the paying parent to inform them of the intention to apply. This communication includes the outstanding debt amount, along with the court location and the date of the hearing.
Use of such powers may have an impact on a parent’s future ability to pay. These powers are therefore only used in circumstances where the CMS believes the parent can pay but is refusing to do so. In such circumstances these powers will have a deterrent effect and as such the numbers are expected to be low.
The CMS is committed to using these powers fairly and in the best interests of children and separated families.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the Child Maintenance Service issues summons documents without the involvement of a justice of the peace.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) does not require a justice of the peace to issue a summons before making an application for a liability order.
When seeking a liability order, the CMS writes directly to the paying parent to inform them of the intention to apply. This communication includes the outstanding debt amount, along with the court location and the date of the hearing.
Use of such powers may have an impact on a parent’s future ability to pay. These powers are therefore only used in circumstances where the CMS believes the parent can pay but is refusing to do so. In such circumstances these powers will have a deterrent effect and as such the numbers are expected to be low.
The CMS is committed to using these powers fairly and in the best interests of children and separated families.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of legal oversight and procedural safeguards in the enforcement processes used by the Child Maintenance Service; and if he will review (a) the process by which liability orders and summonses are issued, (b) the accuracy and treatment of historic arrears inherited from the Child Support Agency, and (c) the availability of data on outcomes for paying parents, including mortality rates.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) exists to ensure that children receive the financial support they are entitled to. When parents fail to financially support their children CMS have a range of enforcement powers that are provided for in the 1991 Child Support Act and the Collection and Enforcement regulations 1992. These include applying to the magistrates’ court for a Liability Order which gives formal recognition of debt a paying parent legally owes.
Decisions surrounding which enforcement method to proceed with are carefully considered by caseworkers based on the case circumstances and the welfare of any qualifying children involved. Parents have a right to challenge the decisions taken by the CMS through established dispute and appeal routes.
In 2018 an exercise to close all CSA cases with live liabilities was completed. As part of that, both parents were given the opportunity to challenge case information, including arrears balances, or decide whether the arrears should move to the CMS to be pursued.
The annual Separated Families statistics, in particular section 6, report the estimated financial impact of child maintenance on non-resident parent households, including both Child Maintenance Service (statutory) arrangements and private (non-statutory) arrangements. The quarterly Child Maintenance Service statistics, particularly sections 6 to 9, contain information on the compliance and enforcement of arrangements made via the service. The Department has no plans to publish mortality data or other additional data relating to Paying Parents.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when his Department last reviewed the Child Maintenance Service’s policy framework for modern shared‑care arrangements; and whether the Service plans to reform its policies on cases where both parents actively share day‑to‑day parenting responsibilities.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government recognises that shared care arrangements can play an important role in supporting children to maintain relationships with both parents after separation.
In the child maintenance system, shared care is reflected in the maintenance calculation. Where a child stays overnight with the paying parent for at least one night a week on average, the amount of maintenance due is reduced to reflect the care provided.
If the Child Maintenance Service is satisfied that both parents have equal day-to-day care for the child, in addition to sharing overnight care, there is no requirement for either parent to pay child maintenance.