Posted 14 October 2025
This morning, the House of Lords Public Services Committee released their report into reforming the Child Maintenance Service (CMS).
This report follows an inquiry held earlier this year where individuals with experience of the CMS, as well as charities and other groups, were asked to submit evidence.
Gingerbread highlighted experiences shared with us by single parents across England and Wales and we were glad to see our evidence and contributions from single parents about the CMS mentioned throughout the report.
The inquiry looked at barriers to using the CMS, it explored why many separated families lack formal arrangements and it also addressed current enforcement issues within the CMS.
The report’s findings
The report concluded that reform needs happen in 3 main areas:
Gingerbread’s response to the report
We welcome the emphasis placed on the role of the CMS as a preventer of child poverty, a focus that echoes the calls made in our #FixTheCMS campaign.
Baroness Morris of Yardley, Chair of the Public Services Committee that published the report, said:
“Too many children who are part of separated families where parents are no longer or have never been together suffer poverty because of issues with child maintenance payments. We are all too aware of the long-lasting effect growing up in such conditions can have on children’s wellbeing, development and opportunities.”
Our research shows that when families don’t receive the child maintenance they’re owed, more than half struggle to pay essential bills. This report shines a light on this issue and offers a clear path toward meaningful change.
It was encouraging to see key CMS reforms included that Gingerbread and single parent campaigners have been calling for, including stronger protections for victim-survivors of domestic abuse, clearer communication methods within the CMS, as well as more robust collaboration between governmental departments. In particular, the report noted the frustrations and discontent that occur because of a lack of communication between the CMS and HMRC, as well as the potential for exploitable loopholes.
The report also covered key issues with current calculation methods, highlighting key contributors that argued that the system is simply not built for children and families in 2025 and that the system must be rooted in fairness.
Baroness Sherlock’s contribution to the report, the Minister with responsibility over the CMS, recognised the need for a CMS that is “both fair and perceived to be fair”. The report explicitly calls on the government to improve the visibility and promotion of the CMS, noting the poor reputation of the CMS puts parents off using it.
Finally, the report highlights the urgency of changes needed within the CMS to better support domestic abuse victim-survivors. The committee calls on the government to immediately introduce changes to the law to allow victim-survivors to switch to ‘Collect and Pay’ arrangements and that until this is done “victims and survivors of domestic abuse will continue to be at risk when using the service”.
What’s Next?
The report is just the start. The Government has two months to respond, laying out its reaction to the findings and the action it is going to take.
Baroness Morris of Yardley, Chair of the Public Services Committee that published the report, said:
“We urge the Government to consider our recommendations when it reviews and implements any changes to the current system and will be asking for regular updates on how reforms to the CMS are progressing.”
Just like the committee has committed to follow up with the government regularly, we’ll be carrying on with our mission to highlight single parent voices to the government. This is the next step in our journey towards real action and real change.
If you want to get more involved in our campaign to #FixtheCMS and deliver better for children across the country, sign up to our mailing list.
