Written questions by Dean.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of disputes involving the Child Maintenance Service on the backlog of cases in the family courts; and what steps she is taking to reduce the time taken to resolve those disputes.

Should a Child Maintenance (CM) claimant dispute a decision made by DWP, they can request a Mandatory Reconsideration (MR) to review the decision made. Subsequently, if they are still dissatisfied with the decision, they can appeal to His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS). Once DWP are notified of the appeal, the Department has 42 days to prepare their appeal response or lapse the appeal if we can improve the decision. To reduce the time taken to resolve Child Maintenance Service (CMS) disputes that have reached Appeal stage, the disputes service has taken the following actions: Recruited an additional team of CMS Appeal Writers in January 2025.Working to identify continuous improvement activity to improve the customer journey and reduce wait times.Utilising overtime to increase clearance volumes.Supporting a two-way data sharing agreement with HMCTS to identify pre-registration Appeal volumes.

What the average value was of each maladministration payment made by her Department in the last 12 months.

The information requested is published within the DWP Annual Reports and Accounts. Data for April 2024 to March 2025 will be published in the 2024/25 DWP Annual Reports and Accounts in or around July 2025.The latest published data is for the period April 2023 to March 2024. In the period April 2023 to March 2024, DWP made 10,567 ex-gratia payments totalling £1.3 million for maladministration.Please note that the total amount of ex-gratia payments for maladministration presented in the DWP Annual Reports and Accounts excludes financial redress paid for loss of statutory entitlement because it is not an extra cost arising from maladministration, but payment of benefit that should have been made anyway.The average value of maladministration payments in the period April 2023 to March 2024 was £120. This value has been calculated based on the unrounded total payments and unrounded number of payments, rounded to the nearest £10.

Whether her Department has had a recruitment freeze on any roles in the last 12 months; and whether she plans to implement a recruitment freeze in the next 12 months.

The Department for Work and Pensions has not had a recruitment freeze on any roles in the last 12 months. There are no current plans in place to implement a recruitment freeze in the next 12 months, and the Department will continue to manage overall resourcing and meeting priorities through workforce plans.

If she will make an estimate of the number of payments her Department has issued as a result of maladministration in the last 12 months.

The information requested is published within the DWP Annual Reports and Accounts. Data for April 2024 to March 2025 will be published in the 2024/25 DWP Annual Reports and Accounts in or around July 2025.The latest published data is for the period April 2023 to March 2024. In the period April 2023 to March 2024, DWP made 10,567 ex-gratia payments totalling £1.3 million for maladministration.Please note that the total amount of ex-gratia payments for maladministration presented in the DWP Annual Reports and Accounts excludes financial redress paid for loss of statutory entitlement because it is not an extra cost arising from maladministration, but payment of benefit that should have been made anyway.The average value of maladministration payments in the period April 2023 to March 2024 was £120. This value has been calculated based on the unrounded total payments and unrounded number of payments, rounded to the nearest £10.

What the cost to the public purse was of maladministration payments issued by her Department in the last 12 months.

The information requested is published within the DWP Annual Reports and Accounts. Data for April 2024 to March 2025 will be published in the 2024/25 DWP Annual Reports and Accounts in or around July 2025.The latest published data is for the period April 2023 to March 2024. In the period April 2023 to March 2024, DWP made 10,567 ex-gratia payments totalling £1.3 million for maladministration.Please note that the total amount of ex-gratia payments for maladministration presented in the DWP Annual Reports and Accounts excludes financial redress paid for loss of statutory entitlement because it is not an extra cost arising from maladministration, but payment of benefit that should have been made anyway.The average value of maladministration payments in the period April 2023 to March 2024 was £120. This value has been calculated based on the unrounded total payments and unrounded number of payments, rounded to the nearest £10.

What steps her Department is taking to support care leavers applying for Universal Credit for the first time.

We understand the challenges care leavers face and that is why the department works closely with Local Authorities’ Leaving Care teams and provides additional dedicated support through a series of safeguards and easements aimed at simplifying care leavers’ interaction with the benefit system. This support includes care leaver’s Single Points of Contact in every jobcentre and an Advanced Claims Process where Local Authorities Leaving Care teams can assist care leavers to prepare their claim to Universal Credit up to 28 days before and including their 18th Birthday. Although the claim can’t be submitted until the care leaver’s 18th birthday, they can be viewed and checked in advance of submission by making a pre-claim appointment with the Jobcentre to help ensure the care leaver has the required documents to make their claim and that all relevant support is in place as early as possible. Under the new Youth Guarantee, all young people aged 18-21 years in England will be able to access support to enter employment, education and training opportunities. This includes care leavers who may benefit from more tailored support to ensure a smoother transition to independence as they leave the care provided by their Local Authority.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a single adult rate for Universal Credit.

There are currently no plans to make such an assessment. The lower rate of Universal Credit for those aged under 25 reflects the fact that the majority of young people live in someone else’s household and are therefore likely to have lower living costs. Younger workers also typically earn less as they are earlier in their careers, with the lower rate maintaining the incentive for younger people to find and progress in work.

If she will take steps to ensure young people aged under 25 and live independently receive the same amount of Universal Credit as those aged over 25.

There are currently no plans to pay the higher rate of Universal Credit to those aged under 25.  The lower rate of Universal Credit for those aged under 25 reflects the fact that the majority of young people live in someone else’s household and are therefore likely to have lower living costs.Younger workers also typically earn less as they are earlier in their careers, with the lower rate maintaining the incentive for younger people to find and progress in work.Support is available to help those who live independently or have additional living costs. Depending on their circumstances, they may also be eligible for additional Universal Credit elements, including for housing, children, and disability.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of care leavers under the age of 25 receiving the higher rate of Universal Credit.

We understand the challenges care leavers face and that is why the department continues to provide additional dedicated support through a series of safeguards and easements aimed at simplifying their interaction with the benefit system. This includes, for example, single care leavers being exempt from the lower, Shared Accommodation Rate and qualifying for the more generous one-bedroom Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rate until their 25th birthday; an advanced claims process where Local Authorities’ Leaving Care teams can assist care leavers to prepare their claim for Universal Credit up to 28 days before and including their 18th birthday; and for those aged 18-21, access to Universal Credit and housing support if they wish to take up full-time study in non-advanced education.

When she plans to publish the feedback from the consultation on the Child Maintenance System.

A consultation on proposed reforms to the Child Maintenance System (CMS) was published by the previous Government on 8 May 2024. These proposed reforms included removing Direct Pay and managing all CMS cases in one service to allow the CMS to tackle non-compliance faster, as well as exploring how victims and survivors of domestic abuse can be better supported. This consultation followed the Child Support Collection (Domestic Abuse) Act which received royal assent in July 2023.The consultation was extended by this Government at the end of July and ran until 30 September 2024. We are currently analysing the responses we have received, and the Government will publish a response in due course.

What assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the potential for the Child Maintenance System to be used as a tool of economic abuse.

The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) takes the issue of domestic and economic abuse extremely seriously and is committed to ensuring that victims of abuse get the help and support they need.CMS Staff receive training to ensure they are able to respond appropriately to parents experiencing domestic abuse. The current Domestic Abuse training package was updated with input from external stakeholders. It includes an understanding of different types of abuse, including economic, and covers post separation abuse. It has been reviewed to ensure it reflects the Home Office’s updated statutory guidance on coercive and controlling behaviour, published in April 2023, to ensure CMS staff are equipped to recognise this form of domestic abuse and signpost parents appropriately.The recent consultation on proposed reforms to CMS included managing all CMS cases in one service to allow the CMS to tackle non-compliance faster and explore how victims and survivors of domestic abuse can be better supported. This proposal would also reduce the ability for perpetrators of domestic abuse to inflict economic control and coercion through withholding child maintenance payments.  The consultation closed on 30 September 2024, and the Government will publish a response in due course.Where a parent fails to pay on time or in full, the CMS will consider enforcement action as quickly as possible to get money flowing and collect any unpaid amounts that have accrued.The CMS has a range of strong enforcement powers to ensure children get the financial support they deserve.  These powers include the ability to deduct directly from the paying parent’s earnings or bank accounts and disqualifications from holding or obtaining driving licenses and passports.