The Information and Support Service is a critical element of our reform programme. We will provide a national service available to all separate and separating parents who need help to think through their options or establish maintenance arrangements. A key aspect of this will be a national contact centre with web-based support and a face-to-face service where appropriate.
These services will provide high quality information products including a guide for parents and a standard maintenance agreement form and will signpost other relevant parenting services. We will pro-actively direct low income families towards this service with the support of Jobcentre Plus and HMRC.
We also recognise that separating parents are not always clear about the issues they need to address and, likewise, the need to resolve wider separation issues first can act as a barrier to making maintenance arrangements. With this in mind, the Commission may also provide guides and links to key public and voluntary sector services and literature on non-maintenance related issues such as housing, benefits, debt and contact.
In order to fully understand what services separated or separating parents require we will carry out additional research that will help us develop further our understanding of what information and support services will be needed in the future.