CHILD SUPPORT AGENCY

The Child Support Agency is a much maligned government agency whose job is to pursue and obtain money from the nonresident parent. The morality and logic of the system is accepted, but the agency appears to be having considerable difficulty in making the system work effectively. There was a suggestion that the government was going to introduce sanctions whereby the non-paying parent could be tagged like a criminal. There are powers to remove offenders’ driving licences, but this has only been exercised five times since the regulations were created.

The Child Support Act 1991 created the CSA which started business in April 1993. In the past child maintenance was dealt with by the courts. The background was that the Treasury was going to make the absent parents pay so that the resident parent could be taken off income support.

A formula was created which calculated the maintenance payable for each child. The figures were linked to the amount payable by social services. The formulae have been dogged with problems and impossible to work out easily. The formula has been changed, but there is still a backlog of cases from the old formula and delay on the cases under the new formula.

The CSA was going to deal with all child maintenance cases, but so far it only deals with those who are in receipt of benefits. They have to use the CSA. The CSA then pursues the non-resident parent for the maintenance. So far they have had very limited success. The power of the courts to hear child maintenance payments has been taken away. Those parties who do not have to use the CSA can agree child maintenance payments in a court order and have this approved by the court.

The Child Support Agency is responsible for calculating and both collecting and enforcing the maintenance. For a fee the Agency will provide their services, but as most people who use the Child Support Agency are on benefits they are exempt from paying the fees. The Agency was formed to reduce the large amounts of income support being paid to lone parents, because the lone parents were not having much luck in obtaining payment from the non-resident parent and as a result were forced to claim state benefits.

The Act allows the Agency to treat any claim for a variety of state benefits as a claim for child support. The applicant is therefore forced to assist the Agency with the claim.

They are required to name the non-resident parent. This is of course controversial, as many mothers do not wish to name the nonresident parent, as there may be no relationship between the father and any children. Some of course may not have been aware that they were the fathers, as they had no long-term relationship with the mother. If the mother does not co-operate she will receive a reduced benefit. If she relents her full entitlement will be granted.

The mother can make an application to the effect that she will not name the father because of violence. If she genuinely believes this and the interviewing officer agrees then she will be entitled to receive her full benefit.

The government website will give you all the details of the CSA. www.csa.gov.uk