Ex partner lying about child living arrangements

[MrDesperate]

My youngest son, with ASD, lives primarily with me but his Mother has been claiming child benefit and DLA for the past two years saying she lives mostly with her. I have challenged this and provided the DWP with two weeks of photographic and dated evidence of him in my care , but still they found in her favour even after appeal. What can I do ?

[Suzie, FRG Adviser]

Dear MrDesperate

Welcome to the parents’ discussion board. Thank you for your post. My name is Suzie. I am Family Rights Group’s online adviser.

I am sorry to hear about your difficult situation in relation to your care of your youngest son who has ASD. You are having issues in relation to his benefits e.g. child benefit and DLA which you explain his mother is wrongly claiming for him. You have appealed to the Department for Work and Pensions, but your appeal was not upheld. I understand how distressing this must be. You are wanting advice on what to do.

At Family Rights Group we provide advice and information when Children’s Services in England are involved or when you wish them to become involved in your family life. From the information you have provided this is not the situation for you and your family.

Instead you are seeking advice in relation to a private law matter, which is when there are disputes between parents or carers about things like where a child lives and how much time they spend with each parent or formalising a legal arrangement by obtaining a court order to demonstrate to other agencies who is the primary carer for a child.

Unfortunately, private law matters do not meet the remit of our service, and we are not funded to provide advice in these types of situations. Neither are we funded to provide welfare rights or appeals advice.

I would suggest you contact the following organisations, who may be able to assist you:

Private law advice:

• Child Law Advice. They do have a telephone helpline which you can reach on 0300 330 5480. In addition, they offer helpful information and guidance for parents/carers in your type of situation and have ‘how to’ guides that you can download for around £2 each. Please do check out their website.

• Advicenow is a website that helps you find the best information and advice for your legal problems. You can choose from a range of categories, such as divorce and separation, child custody and residence, and more.

• Both Parents Matter is a charity that helps parents (regardless of marital status or gender) navigate family separation and maintain contact with their children. It offers information, advice, support, and advocacy through a helpline, online forum, and branches across the UK.

Money, debt, and welfare rights advice; if you click on the link you will find contact details for services who advise on these matters.

And you may also find it helpful to get advice and support from Gingerbread, the single parent charity.

I hope that you can access the right advice and support to resolve the situation.

Best wishes

Suzie