This section provides information and guidance for parents
- going through a relationship break-up, divorce or separation, or
- involved in the birth of a baby to a lone mother.
Whatever the circumstances that led you to being on your own, having to sort out arrangements for the future can be distressing.
You may need to make some very difficult decisions and think about important issues on your own for the first time. These might include how to make sure you’ve got enough money to live on, what you’re going to do about your children and working out what to do with your home and belongings.
There are many websites, leaflets, telephone helplines and organisations that can help you when your relationship breaks up. But trying to find your way through to the right people with the right knowledge at the right time can be confusing, frustrating and difficult.
This website aims to help you find your way through that maze. It tells you about the different ways you and your ex-partner can reach an agreement about paying and receiving child maintenance – the money that the non-resident parent must pay to the parent with care to help with the costs of bringing up children. It contains information on:
- people you can contact for further advice and guidance
- a checklist of things you might need to think about
- what your options are for paying or receiving child maintenance, including using CSA
- an online child maintenance calculator to help you make the best decision for your situation.
Related information
- Read our leaflet
"What is child maintenance and how does it affect me?" [PDF 246Kb]
