Child maintenance and mediation
Key facts
- Child maintenance can be agreed privately in mediation as a “family-based arrangement”, or calculated using the statutory Child Maintenance Service (CMS) formula.
- A family-based arrangement is free, flexible and not legally binding. It relies on both parents keeping to what they agreed.
- The CMS basic rate is 12% of the paying parent’s gross weekly income for one child, 16% for two and 19% for three or more.
- The number of nights the child stays with the paying parent reduces the amount.
- Child maintenance is usually handled outside a financial consent order, because the CMS route remains available.
Money for the children is one of the most sensitive things separated parents discuss, and one of the most practical. This guide explains how child maintenance works, the difference between agreeing it yourselves and using the statutory service, the current CMS rates, and how maintenance fits with the rest of your arrangements.
Child maintenance is part of the wider picture of child arrangements, and it often overlaps with sorting out the family finances. If your separation also involves property, pensions or spousal support, see our guide to financial mediation.
What is child maintenance?
Child maintenance is regular financial support towards a child’s everyday living costs, paid by the parent the child spends less time with to the parent who provides most of the day-to-day care. It is meant to cover things like food, clothing and a share of the household costs. Both parents are responsible for supporting their children financially, whatever the arrangements for time.
There are two main ways to sort it out: agree it between yourselves, often in mediation, or ask the Child Maintenance Service to work it out and, if needed, collect it. Many parents start with the first and only use the second if agreement breaks down.
Family-based arrangement or the CMS?
A family-based arrangement is simply an agreement the two of you reach directly. It is free, private and flexible, so you can tailor it to your family, for example by agreeing to share specific costs like school trips or clubs on top of a regular figure. The trade-off is that it is not legally binding and relies on trust. Mediation is a good place to reach one, because a mediator helps you look at the figures calmly and fairly.
The Child Maintenance Service is the statutory route. It applies a set formula based on the paying parent’s income and can arrange collection if a family-based arrangement is not working. There is normally an application fee and, if the CMS also collects the money, a percentage is added. Many parents use the CMS figure as a fair benchmark even when they agree the amount privately.
| Family-based arrangement | Child Maintenance Service | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free | Application fee, plus a collection charge if used |
| Flexibility | High, tailored to your family | Fixed statutory formula |
| Binding? | No, relies on cooperation | Enforceable through the CMS |
| Best when | Communication is reasonable | Agreement is not possible or has broken down |
How the CMS works out maintenance
The CMS uses the paying parent’s gross weekly income and the number of children. There are several rates depending on income. The figures below are the current statutory rates. They are a useful guide even if you agree maintenance yourselves.
| Rate | When it applies | What is paid |
|---|---|---|
| Nil | Gross weekly income below £7, or the parent is a student or in prison | Nothing |
| Flat | Income of £7 to £100 a week, or on certain benefits | £7 a week |
| Reduced | Income of £100.01 to £199.99 a week | A formula amount above the flat rate |
| Basic | Income of £200 to £800 a week | 12% for one child, 16% for two, 19% for three or more |
| Basic plus | Income above £800 up to £3,000 a week | 9% for one child, 12% for two, 15% for three or more on the part over £800 |
The amount is then reduced according to how many nights a year the child stays overnight with the paying parent. Roughly, 52 to 103 nights cuts the amount by one seventh, 104 to 155 nights by two sevenths, 156 to 174 nights by three sevenths, and 175 nights or more halves it, with a further small reduction. If the paying parent’s income is above £3,000 a week, the receiving parent can apply to court for a top-up. You can check an estimate on the gov.uk calculator and our costs overview before you talk figures.
Shared care
The more nights the children stay with the paying parent, the lower the maintenance. This is one reason it helps to settle the contact pattern and the money together, rather than treating them as a trade-off against each other.
What child maintenance is meant to cover
Child maintenance is aimed at a child’s everyday living costs: a share of the food, heating, clothing and the roof over their head. It is not usually expected to stretch to every extra, and many parents agree to share certain bigger costs separately, such as school uniforms, trips, clubs or childcare. Setting out clearly what the regular figure covers, and what you will split on top, heads off a lot of later confusion.
Maintenance is also separate from other kinds of financial support. Spousal maintenance, where one former partner supports the other, is a different question and is dealt with as part of the wider financial settlement rather than through the Child Maintenance Service. If that is relevant to you, our guide to spousal maintenance explains how it works and how it differs from child maintenance.
Why maintenance sits outside a consent order
When couples finalise their finances on divorce, they often put the agreement into a financial consent order, a court-approved order explained in our glossary entry on a consent order. Child maintenance is usually kept out of that order. This is because the statutory CMS scheme generally takes priority, and either parent can normally apply to the CMS after 12 months even if the order tried to fix maintenance. So maintenance for the children is typically agreed separately, as a family-based arrangement or through the CMS, while the consent order deals with property, pensions and spousal support.
There are limited exceptions where maintenance can be written into an order, for example school fees or top-up payments above the CMS maximum. A solicitor can advise on your specific case. Mediation can still produce a clear written note of what you have agreed on child maintenance, sitting alongside the rest of your settlement.
One practical point catches a lot of parents by surprise. Even if you agree a maintenance figure in writing and both stick to it happily, either of you can usually still apply to the Child Maintenance Service after 12 months. So a family-based arrangement is best thought of as a shared agreement rather than a permanent settlement of the question. Reviewing the figure yourselves each year, for example when incomes change, keeps it fair and reduces the chance that either parent feels the need to involve the CMS at all.
A worked example of a CMS calculation
An example makes the formula easier to follow. Imagine a paying parent with a gross weekly income of 600 pounds, one child to support, and no other children living with them. Under the basic rate, one child is 12 per cent of gross weekly income, which is 72 pounds a week. If that child stays overnight with the paying parent between 104 and 155 nights a year, the amount is reduced by two sevenths, bringing it to around 51 pounds a week. If the paying parent also had one other child living in their household, their gross income would first be reduced by 11 per cent before the percentage was applied. These are the same steps the Child Maintenance Service uses, and they work just as well as a fair benchmark when you agree a figure yourselves in mediation.
Other children in the household
Before applying the percentage, the paying parent’s gross weekly income is reduced by 11 per cent if they have one other child living with them, 14 per cent for two, and 16 per cent for three or more. This recognises that they are supporting other children too.
Direct Pay, Collect and Pay, and the fees
If you use the statutory service, there are two ways the money can move. With Direct Pay, the Child Maintenance Service works out the amount and the parents arrange the payments between themselves, which is free apart from the application fee. With Collect and Pay, the service also collects and passes on the money, and a collection fee applies on top. A family-based arrangement agreed in mediation avoids all of this, because you handle the payments directly.
| Route | How it works | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Family-based arrangement | You agree and manage it yourselves, often in mediation | Free |
| Direct Pay | The service calculates, you pay each other directly | One-off application fee |
| Collect and Pay | The service calculates, collects and passes on the money | Application fee plus a collection charge |
There is normally a 20 pound fee to apply to the Child Maintenance Service, though you do not pay it if you are aged 18 or under or have experienced domestic abuse. Where Collect and Pay is used, the paying parent pays a fee of 20 per cent on top of the maintenance and the receiving parent has 4 per cent taken off, so most parents who can manage it prefer Direct Pay or a private arrangement.
Keeping child maintenance under review
Incomes and routines change, so a maintenance figure is best treated as something you revisit rather than set once and forget. The Child Maintenance Service reworks a calculation if the paying parent’s income changes by 25 per cent or more, and reviews cases annually. If you have a family-based arrangement, a simple yearly check against the current figures keeps it fair and reduces the chance that either parent feels the need to involve the service. Maintenance normally continues while a child is under 16, or under 20 if they are in approved education or training.
Priya and Jon agreed most things in mediation but got stuck on maintenance. Jon worried he was being asked for too much; Priya worried she was being short-changed. The mediator used the CMS figures as a neutral starting point, then they adjusted for the nights the children spent with Jon and agreed to split the cost of school clubs separately. Writing the figure and the extras down as a family-based arrangement gave them both confidence it was fair.
Frequently asked questions
Can we agree child maintenance in mediation?
Yes. Mediation is a common place to agree a family-based arrangement. A mediator helps you look at the figures fairly, often using the CMS formula as a benchmark, and writes down what you agree.
How much is child maintenance for one child?
Under the CMS basic rate it is 12% of the paying parent’s gross weekly income for one child, 16% for two children and 19% for three or more, before any reduction for overnight stays.
Do overnight stays reduce child maintenance?
Yes. The more nights a year the child stays with the paying parent, the lower the amount, on a sliding scale from one seventh off at 52 nights up to half at 175 nights or more.
Is child maintenance included in a consent order?
Usually not. The statutory CMS scheme generally takes priority, and either parent can apply to the CMS after 12 months. Maintenance is normally agreed separately, though limited exceptions such as school fees exist.
What if we cannot agree on maintenance?
If a family-based arrangement is not possible, either parent can apply to the Child Maintenance Service, which will calculate the amount using the statutory formula and can arrange collection.
Is there a fee to use the Child Maintenance Service?
There is normally a 20 pound application fee, unless you are 18 or under or have experienced domestic abuse. If you use the Collect and Pay service, the paying parent pays a 20 per cent fee on top and the receiving parent has 4 per cent deducted. A family-based arrangement is free.
What counts as income for child maintenance?
The Child Maintenance Service uses the paying parent’s gross weekly income, based on figures from HMRC. It is reduced to reflect any pension contributions and any other children living in their household before the percentage is applied.
Does child maintenance change if my income changes?
It can. The service reworks the calculation when income goes up or down by 25 per cent or more, and reviews cases each year. If you have agreed a figure yourselves, reviewing it annually keeps it fair as circumstances change.
Until what age is child maintenance paid?
Child maintenance is normally paid while a child is under 16, or under 20 if they remain in approved education or training, such as A levels or an equivalent course.