Eight in ten paying parents say CMS has harmed their mental wellbeing
New findings from Both Parents Matter’s 2026 survey reveal widespread dissatisfaction among paying parents with the Child Maintenance Service (CMS), with many respondents describing a system they believe is unfair and detrimental to their mental health.
The human cost of dealing with the CMS
Almost four in five (79.1%) respondents who had interacted with the CMS said it had negatively affected their mental wellbeing. Nearly half (47.2%) described the impact as very negative, while a further 31.9% said it was somewhat negative. The figures demonstrate the extent to which child maintenance disputes and interactions with the CMS can become a source of prolonged stress for separated parents. Parents can find themselves having to repeatedly explain their circumstances, challenge decisions, provide information and deal with assessments they believe are incorrect or unfair. For parents already dealing with the difficulties of separation and maintaining relationships with their children, the experience can become a significant additional source of pressure.
The costs of maintaining a relationship with children
Financial pressure is also widespread. 31.0% said their payments were unaffordable, while a further 42.1% said they were affordable only by putting some or considerable strain on their finances. Overall, 73.1% therefore reported that maintenance was either unaffordable or financially burdensome. Our survey also revealed the wider financial commitments faced by paying parents trying to stay involved in their children’s lives. These include the cost of travelling to see children, accommodation, contact centres, food, activities, clothing and holidays.
57.8% reported spending at least £100 a month on costs associated with maintaining contact with their children, while 32.5% reported spending £500 or more.
Similarly, 76.7% reported spending at least £100 a month on the costs of parenting their children, with 37.5% spending £500 or more.
These costs are additional to child maintenance payments and legal costs. The figures reinforce the concern that the financial circumstances of the parents and the child cannot be understood simply by looking at the paying parent’s income and the amount of child maintenance paid.
A widespread perception that the system gets it wrong
The survey results also show a strong perception among paying parents that the financial outcome of the system does not reflect the wider circumstances of their families. 70.2% of paying parents do not consider their child maintenance payments to be fair, compared with just 17.2% who considered them fair. 63.3% of respondents believed that the other parent was financially better off than they were, including 53.6% who said the other parent was considerably better off.
This does not, in itself, establish that individual CMS assessments are incorrect. However, it demonstrates the strength of the perception among paying parents that the system does not often produce outcomes that are fair and equitable. For an organisation supporting parents to remain actively involved in their children’s lives, this is a significant concern.
When the system becomes part of the problem
The results from the survey raise broader questions about the operation of the CMS and the experience of parents who use it. A statutory service dealing with payments that directly affect parents’ ability to support themselves and maintain relationships with their children needs to command confidence from both paying and receiving parents. Instead, our research shows a large majority of paying parents who believe their assessments are unfair, alongside an overwhelming majority reporting a negative impact on their mental health.
These findings suggest that many paying parents perceive the CMS as a system that is not simply difficult to deal with, but one that can itself become a significant source of financial and emotional distress.
We are calling for greater transparency, accountability and fairness in the operation of the CMS, together with a proper recognition of the circumstances and continuing role of both parents.
We are calling for the Government to revisit its decision not to make changes to the current calculation system, which perpetuates conflict, militates against shared parenting, is unaffordable for so many and which is an outlier in the western world.
The objective of child maintenance should be to ensure that children are properly supported by both parents. A system that leaves large numbers of parents feeling unfairly treated, financially pressured and deeply distressed risks undermining confidence in that objective.
Child maintenance should support children without unnecessarily creating conflict and distress between parents. When almost four in five parents say their experience with the CMS has harmed their mental wellbeing, policymakers need to take a serious look at how the system is operating in practice.
The survey does not establish that individual CMS assessments are incorrect, but it provides clear evidence of a strong perception among respondents that the system is unfair, financially stressful and damaging to wellbeing.
About the survey
The findings are from the Both Parents Matter 2026 survey – Experiences of Separated Parents and reflect the experiences and views of respondents. They should not be taken as necessarily representative of all paying parents or all CMS cases.
