In Memory Of

In Memory of those driven to suicide by the persecution inflicted on them by the Child Support Agency.

The Child Support Agency has been the cause of innocent people taking their own lives. Reports of these suicides on TV and in newspapers is probably a small percentage of the true number. Why does our Government sit back and let this happen?

Do the CSA (child support agency) actually play a part in NRP suicide? We would say yes, on two occasions on our forum we have supported members through suicidal thought. NRP become depressed and desperate when faced with massive child support bills. They simply cannot see a way forward. Child support can be as much as a second mortgage, for up to 19 years, and when faced with arrears usually through no fault of their own it just becomes too much. The CSA are currently approaching NRP with demands of tens of thousands of pounds and giving them a maximum of 24 months to pay. Detachments of earnings are being set up for 40% of the NRP income with a threat of bailiffs to boot. How can anyone cope with that outlook?

Reasons NRP contemplate suicide range from the guilt of not being able to provide for second families to losing homes/jobs. It is not unreasonable to think the CSA is perhaps "the final straw”
Obviously neither the CSA nor the government will admit this, and in all instances give the same standard answers “the child support agency is responsible for making both parents meet their financial responsibilities to their children” or words to the effect...

Furthermore, this Agency has sometimes extremely long periods of unrelenting incompetence that even the hardiest of  people consider giving up. Consider the real case of a single mother who spent 12 years trying to get the child support agency to collect maintenance from her ex for the children. Despite phone calls to them at least once each week, and a letter each month, and going through her MP to the (ice) Independent Case Examiner (where she got a fair report) and the Ombudsman (where she also got a fair report), they failed for 12 years to deliver. But because of their very existance, all other options were no longer available - she was forced to use the CSA instead of the family courts, but while the courts may have collected some child support, they didn't. She had the choice of closing the case, and she did (with the loss of tens of thousands of pounds). A non-resident parent would have had no legal way out, he does not have an option to close down a case, and instead has to put up with it for as long as the PWC chooses. The attitude of the CSA towards an NRP (especially a man) can be disgusting and plain insulting even compared to this attitude to a female PWC. Think of a recent case a NRP who didn’t realise he had a child; he was 19 yrs old when the child was born to a one night stand. 12 years later the agency inform him he owes £68,000 for the whole of the Childs life, he has no option to put his loving family into poverty, and possibly lose his family home, not before bailiffs empty it, this behaviour is wrong!!!!!!!

It is also worthy of note:

In cases where a PWC has been inreceipt of benefits, at anytime during the period of the case, they have NO influence over whether arrears are abandoned or collected for these periods. As said arrears are due to the 'Secretary of State'.

We believe if the agency continues with its internal debt steer, more and more NRP will see suicide as the only way out, let’s hope on this occasion we are wrong!