Proving a child is not in education

Hi all,
I have been paying child and spousal maintenance since 2016. The wording in the final order is
"spousal maintenance shall be paid until the surviving youngest child reaches 18 or ceases full time secondary or tertiary education". This clause also applies to the sale of the family home.

The issues depend on when my daughter ceases full time education. She enrolled in college in Sept 2021 attended for a week and never returned. Her mother then enrolled her into an online course, which again my daughter never studied for. She was enrolled on the course purely for appearances, to enable her mother to continue claiming child benefit, child and spousal maintenance.

I have a great relationship with my daughter and even though she doesn't live with me, I have met with her most days for the past nine years. I know that she has never studied and she freely admits this too.

However, my daughter does love a pound note and thrives on the challenge of making them disappear as quickly as possible, what she lacks in academic ethics she gains in work ethics. Since November 2021 when she was 16, she has had three forms of employment, the first two part time, the last which she started in June 2023 being full-time 40 hours.

She actually ceased full time education in 2021 when she was 16 and although I knew she had ceased full-time education, as defined by the GOV.UK website, I continued paying maintenance because I did not want her caught up in a financial battle between her mother and I and also believed it would be unsettling for her to move home at that age.

Now she is 18 and is doing well for herself and I feel that I can stop paying the maintenances and sell the MFH. I have been informed by the CMS that the end of the educational year is the first Monday in September. However, for maintenance to stop my ex has to inform the child benefits office that my daughter has ceased education, which she is denying by saying my daughter is still studying. She is very conservative with the truth and has never informed the Child benefits office of any changes of circumstances which is her obligation.

I have now been contacted by my ex's solicitor stating that my daughter is in full time education until the 31st of October and that I am required to pay until then. This is an attempt by my ex to gain another two months money out of me £2000 by claiming that my daughter is still studying for the online course. My ex knows this is untrue, I know this is untrue but how do I prove this and would it be worth fighting in court. If it did get to court could I claim back the two years maintenance that I paid when I should have stopped? Which I feel I should do purely because of her greed.

Any help with this matter would be appreciated.

What evidence have you been given about the course, hours of study, attendance, achievement etc?
I would be inclined to write to say you are pleased to hear your daughter is continuing her studies, express concern about how she's fitting this in around employment and ask for evidence. I believe she'd need to be doing 12-18 hours a week for it to count as full time.
If you withheld payment her recourse would be to CMS for enforcement. She would have to prove your daughter is in education. NB It can be quite a financial cliff edge when children cease education.

Hadenoughnow

Hi Hadenoughnow,
many thanks for your reply.
I have no evidence at all about the online course. I have asked my ex's solicitor for proof of study, essays, exam results (fail or pass). I did pay child maintenance this month and will continue until Im informed by the CMS that my liabilities cease, however I only paid a percentage of spousal maintenance up until the 4th of September, ( as I pay in advance) I believe the only person that can enforce this is a judge, which will require evidence of her claims.

As I previously stated, my daughter will freely admit she has not studied for two years. Furthermore, when my ex realised I had only paid part of the spousal maintenance, she as always, confronted my daughter and accused me of breaking the court order. My daughter explained the obvious that she is no longer in education.

My best defence is my daughter but I would never put her in a position to contradict her mother.

I will post again once I receive a reply from her solicitor.

Thanks for your reply.