Children: Maintenance
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many cases of bailiff action have occurred as a result of outstanding child maintenance payments in each of the last five years.
Answered by Andrew Western
The Child Maintenance Service may seek a Liability Order only when a Paying Parent has not met their obligations and other measures have been exhausted. In England and Wales, such orders may enable referral to enforcement agents, previously known as bailiffs, to recover arrears. In Scotland, enforcement proceeds through the Scottish civil court system.
The Department regularly publishes Child Maintenance Service official statistics, with the latest statistics available to September 2025. Table 6.1 of the accompanying National tables provides the information about enforcement actions used by the CMS. The table shows quarterly statistics for liability order applications and enforcement agent referrals for England & Wales, between October 2015 and September 2025.
Verbatim has judged this answer against the question that was actually asked — answered, partly answered, or evaded. Sign in to see the verdict →