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RESOLVED:

1.      That this Council notes:

a)           
Under current the Child Maintenance Service (CMS), a
parent could in certain circumstances have their child support
payments reduced by becoming resident with a new partner, if their
new partner’s children become dependents.

b)           
This decrease in financial support often reduces the
income to the primary carer and, in many cases, where it is mothers
who take on most parenting responsibilities after separation, many
rely on maintenance payments to provide for their
children.

c)            
In Milton Keynes:

i)         
there are round 9,340 single parent families, many
of whom depend on regular child maintenance to make ends
meet;

ii)       
more than 20,000 children are living in poverty,
which is nearly 1 in 3;

iii)     
almost half of paying parents in the city have been
found to fall short on their maintenance obligations;

iv)     
a recent local survey of 102 women shows that 40%
feel that CMS is not fit for purpose for either party or the
children, 21% have been affected by payment reductions in these
circumstances, and 18% said that although they are entitled to
maintenance payments, they do not engage with the Child Maintenance
Service;

v)       
when the system allows payments to be reduced to
support other dependants children from
the original relationship can be left worse off; and

vi)     
the Government has announced plans to reform the
Child Maintenance Service, including stronger enforcement and
improved support for victims of domestic abuse and whilst they are
welcome, these changes do not address the issue of payment
reductions that can affect children from previous relationships
when a parent enters a new familial relationship, and the need
reform the system to address the growing number, and levels of
complexity, around blended families.

 2.    
That this Council believes:

a)           
The needs of dependant
children from previous relationships should not be disadvantaged
when one parent becomes part of a new household with dependant
responsibilities.

b)           
Supporting dependent children from previous
relationships is a legal and moral obligation for all
parents.

c)            
The current system is failing too many parents who
pick up the majority of parenting
responsibilities as well as their children, especially in cities
like Milton Keynes where the cost-of-living is already
high.

3.            
That this Council resolves to:

a)     
Ask the Chief Executive to write to the Secretary of State for Work
and Pensions, calling for a review of the CMS payment calculation
rules. Specifically, we ask for:

i)         
the government to include blended family
responsibilities, and the issues that can arise from their complex
nature, in their review of the CMS to ensure a fairer system which
acknowledges that reduced support payments can severely impact the
welfare of children from previous relationships; and

ii)       
the issue should form part of the wider strategy
being developed to reduce child poverty.

b)     
Ask the Chief Executive, in conjunction with all Group Leaders, to
write to the Chair of the Local Government Association to press for
wider reform so the Child Maintenance System works more effectively
to support children and to highlight these specific
issues.

c)     
Ask the
Leader of the Council to write to the three local MPs requesting
them to raise this issue in Parliament and champion fairer
treatment for families across the city.