Child maintenance support needs review.
Child maintenance should support a child’s reasonable needs, not automatically scale indefinitely with a parent’s income. The current system unfairly penalises earning progression and lacks transparency.
Signatures
7
signatures
Government response threshold (10,000) · 7/10,000
Debate threshold (100,000) · 7/100,000
- 10 APR 2026Petition rejectedduplicate
You may wish to sign this petition which calls for a similar action: Have a set maximum amount for child maintenance per child. https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/756699
- 09 MAR 2026Petition created
Background
The Child Maintenance Service calculates payments as a percentage of the paying parent’s income. This means payments automatically rise with income even when a child’s needs have not changed. We ask to review the system to introduce reasonable caps, consider actual child costs, recognise direct contributions such as school fees or childcare, and explore appropriate transparency measures so maintenance better reflects genuine child needs. More info: https://www.change.org/child_support