The CMS should ensure its guidance is clear on situations of 50/50 day-to-day care and that, where court orders are made under the expectation of care being equally split, no maintenance is deemed to be due. The use of child benefit to determine that maintenance is indeed due appears to us to be a blunt tool and recommend that the CMS should not use child benefit as an effective proxy to determine whether child maintenance is due.

The CMS should ensure its guidance is clear on situations of 50/50 day-to-day care and that, where court orders are made under the expectation of care being equally split, no maintenance is deemed to be due. The use of child benefit to determine that maintenance is indeed due appears to us to be a blunt tool and recommend that the CMS should not use child benefit as an effective proxy to determine whether child maintenance is due. Type: conclusion | Number: 20 | Paragraph: 87 | Response status: under_consideration Government response: The government is committed to ensuring transparency in how decisions are made, and the Child Maintenance Decision Makers Guide is published on GOV.UK and readily accessible. The DWP will review the CMS caseworker guidance on 50/50 day-to-day care to ensure that timely, accurate decisions can be mad