Child maintenance payments: More than half of Sheffield parents behind on payments

New figures by National World's data team paint an upsetting picture in the UK, where separated parents are struggling with bills on both sides of the split.

Single parents are strapped for cash without their owed child support payments, while the people ordered to pay them are in arrears.

But single parent support charity Gingerbread has also scolded the ‘lax’ efforts of Child Maintenance Service to step in and enforce payments, and has called the Government ‘disinterested’.

In Sheffield, there are 687 parents currently in arrears to CMS, and 53 per cent of all parents ordered to pay contributions are behind on what they owe.

There are also 460 parents who have been ordered to pay but don’t pay anything, a proportion of around 36 per cent.

It means at least 1,124 children in Sheffield are affected by parents being behind on payments.

Across the UK, it is estimated some 93,000 parents are in arrears over CMS payments, affecting over 154,000 children.

It shows how parents ordered to pay CMS are struggling to make their contributions.

But Victoria Benson, chief executive of Gingerbread, a charity that supports single parent families, says the other side of the coin is that it also means parents who are owed CMS payments are unable to escape poverty without the money they are due.

She said: “Research shows that 60 per cent of single parent families living in poverty and not receiving child maintenance would be able to escape the poverty trap if they were paid the money they're owed.

“Parents have a legal and moral duty to contribute to their child's upbringing whether they live with them or not and where this money isn’t paid willingly the CMS needs to step in.

“Child maintenance simply cannot be seen as optional. The CMS needs to use its powers to stamp out persistent non-payment and ensure that no child experiences hardship or poverty because their non-resident parent won’t support them financially.

“It's about time this government and the Department for Work and Pensions took the issue of unpaid maintenance seriously. It's shameful that so many children are forced to live in poverty as a result of a lax Child Maintenance Service and a disinterested government department.”

A Government spokesperson for the DWP said: “Child maintenance is an essential source of income for many lone-parent families, helping to lift 140,000 children out of poverty on average each year.

“Child maintenance is calculated so it is reasonable and affordable according to a paying parent’s income. Giving children the best start in life is the service’s priority, so parents who can afford to pay more must do so. The Child Maintenance Service got a record £1 billion to children of separated parents last year.

“We recognise people are struggling with rising prices and have continually taken action to help households by phasing in £37bn worth of support throughout the year. Eight million of the most vulnerable households will receive at least £1,200 of additional help.”