Mummy's phone, a poem
Last updated: 16/02/2026
This poem, Mummy’s Phone, was written by a parent in the Single Parent Expert Group for Transforming Child Maintenance. It captures the emotional impact of watching a parent struggle to navigate the Child Maintenance Service.
Mummy's phone
This poem, written through a child's eyes, shows how children can sometimes carry the emotional weight of a parent struggling to navigate a complex system.
Right now, too many children are missing out on the support they’re owed.
The current child maintenance system is complicated, inconsistent and often fails the families who rely on it most.
Analysis by IPPR Scotland, published in our joint report Better for everyone: a new vision for child maintenance, shows that if all children received the maintenance they are entitled to, £2.7 billion would reach around two million children, lifting around 210,000 out of poverty.
Together, One Parent Families Scotland, Fife Gingerbread and IPPR Scotland have set out a clear plan to change that — a plan that would make the system fairer, safer and easier for all separated families.
We know what needs to change — now we need action. Add your name to our open letter to the Prime Minister and call for a child maintenance system that delivers for all children in separated families.