When a couple with children separate then the rules for the financial provision for the children are different depending on whether or not they have been married.  For an unmarried couple, the length and nature of the parent’s relationship will not usually be significant as a child’s needs remain the same, however the standard of living and circumstances of the paying parent are important. 

The key principle in assessing the financial provision for children is welfare of the child although where the parents are unmarried this is not necessarily the overriding consideration.

Child maintenance is normally dealt with through the Child Support Agency or C-MEC as it is now called, which is independent of the court.

If the parents never married, the court is limited to making capital orders, such as a lump sum order or providing a home for them to grow up in and school fees orders. If the parent who is paying the maintenance is sufficiently wealthy, the court can order ‘top up’ child maintenance above the C-MEC assessment.

The court is able to set up a trust to provide a house for the child until a certain event, such as reaching the age of 18 or finishing their first degree. After this time, the home will normally then revert to the paying parent and they can do with it what they want.  This ensures that the parent caring for the child does not obtain any personal benefit unrelated to their responsibilities as a carer.

The court may also order a lump sum, for example, to clear debts, purchase a car or buy furniture. The money must be paid directly to the child or must be for the benefit of the child, although this is given a wide meaning by the courts, and has been known to include decorating costs and the costs of travelling abroad.

The court will then consider what income is required by the caring parent to maintain the house and look after the child. These orders may be varied by the court at a later stage when circumstances change. The paying parent is entitled to a reasonably detailed account of the expenditure to ensure that the money is being spent for the benefit of the child.

If you have children and are concerned about how you will be able to support them if you separate, please call Julie Skill in Chesterfield, Ruth Froggatt in Mansfield or Libby Wood in Matlock.

The contents of this article are for the purposes of general awareness only. They do not purport to constitute legal or professional advice.  Readers should not act on the basis of the information included and should take appropriate professional advice upon their own particular circumstances

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