Health professionals in England are being given advice so that they can confidently step in to help separated parents with money worries.

Around half of Britain’s three million children living in separated families go without child maintenance because their parents don’t have any arrangements in place.

Child Maintenance Options has launched a new leaflet that makes it easy for health professionals to talk to separated parents about child maintenance and refer them to Child Maintenance Options for specialist help.

Work and Pensions Minister, Maria Miller, said:

“Child maintenance can make an incredible difference to children’s lives, making sure they get the best possible start in life. And, importantly, when it’s done amicably between parents, it can help keep both parents involved in the lives of their children. There’s no need for a formal referral. Just passing on the contact details for the Options service will be enough to make a huge difference to many children’s life chances.”