Overview

The Institute's evaluation of the first stage of Australia's Child Support Scheme covers the experiences of more than 15,000 custodial and non-custodial parents, includes in the analysis data from more than 40,000 cases registered with the Child Support Agency, and canvasses the views of employers involved in the collection of maintenance. Overall the findings indicate that Australia has moved in the right direction. Prior to the Scheme, over 70 per cent of children eligible for maintenance were receiving no payments at all from their non-custodial parents; even those who were, averaged only about $24 per week for one child, an amount clearly out of line with Institute research on the cost of keeping children. Under the new Scheme, the average amount of maintenance had increased to $31.29 for each child per week at the end of 1990.

Australian Institute of Family Studies Monograph No. 10