Child Support (Hansard, 16 December 1998)

§ Angela Eagle

We expect the Child Support Agency to provide a consistent, fair and efficient service to all its clients. We have set out proposals for radical reform in our Green Paper "Children First: a new approach to child support" (Cm3992).

The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the Chief Executive, Mrs. Faith Boardman. She will write to my hon. Friend.

Letter from Faith Boardman to Ms Jenny Jones, dated 15 December 1998: I am replying to your Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security about child support payments owed by self employed non-resident parents to children in Wolverhampton. I cannot provide precisely all the information that you have requested, but have provided as much as possible from information available. The Agency has six front-line Business Units; each of these consists of a Child Support Agency Centre and associated field offices. Cases where the parent with care lives in Wolverhampton are dealt with by the Midlands Business Unit for which information has been provided. At 30 September 1998 the amount of child support full maintenance assessment debt for the Midlands Business Unit was £91,546,756. This can be broken down further to £53,371,759(58.3%) collectable debt, £35,611,688(38.9%) possibly uncollectable debt and £2,563,309(2.8%) deferred debt. Deferred debt is where the Agency has deferred the debt indefinitely, provided non-resident parents meet certain conditions on payment of regular maintenance and any remaining debt. Where appropriate the parent with care will be compensated for the loss of this money. To further increase the flow of maintenance and to help non-resident parents pay the arrears that they owe, wherever possible the Agency makes every effort to re-schedule debts; re-scheduled debts are those where the Agency has negotiated a closely monitored agreement with the non-resident parent to pay arrears by instalments. The amount of debt re-scheduled included in the £91,546,756 at 30 September 1998 was £69,513,784. It is not possible to say how much of this debt is owed by self employed non-resident parents, however I can tell you that 3.5% of the Midlands Business Unit's live and assessed caseload relate to cases where the non-resident parent is self employed. The Agency acknowledges that cases where the non-resident parent is self employed can be more difficult to progress, especially where the non-resident parent does not wish to comply. The key to securing early compliance is by personal contact with our clients. By approaching clients at the initial stages of their assessment we aim to build a better relationship with them, address their concerns promptly and provide an improved level of service. 615W We have increased resources for our Client Helplines and the National Enquiry Line, extended our hours of opening to cover 8.00am to 8.00pm Monday to Friday and 9.00am to 5.00pm on Saturdays and carried out trials to greatly improve and increase clients' opportunities to secure a face to face service. Additionally we have recently completed a pilot study in the South Western Business Unit, looking at how best to process self employed cases. Trials using dedicated staff dealing exclusively with the self employed have shown a marked reduction in processing time and an increase in the collection of maintenance. We intend to have specific sections, supported by accountants where necessary, in each Business Unit by March 1999 to deal exclusively with self employed customers. Also, to assist us to trace the whereabouts of self employed non-resident parents, we are exploring the possibility of sharing information with other Agencies and Government Departments. We 616W have also revised staff training and raised staff awareness of the Agency's self employed powers, working practices and related issues. If all voluntary methods to secure maintenance from a self employed non-resident parent fail, a liability order is applied for. It is hoped that the threat of such action will be enough to ensure compliance. The majority do agree to make an arrangement and only in a very small minority of cases is legal action actually taken. We will use any and all enforcement methods legally available but we experience the same difficulties as other litigants in enforcing a civil debt. During 1997/98 we have been successful in registering debt by County Court Judgement in 522 cases. Where all other action has failed, the Agency has pursued cases for prosecution; between October 1997 and March 1998 a total of 15 suspended custodial sentences were imposed. A self employed non-resident parent was committed to prison as a result of non payment of maintenance. I hope this reply is helpful.