This report draws on the experiences of 675 single mothers who have engaged with the Australian child support system. It reveals how violence is the backdrop to women’s engagement within each stage of the child support process and the compounding impact of violence and poverty. The report makes four recommendations that would reduce the capacity...

This report draws on post-separation lived experience to demonstrate the ways that the Australian Child Support Scheme can be used and abused to jeopardise the financial safety of recipient parents and their children.

Much has been written about the need for the child support system to be "fair" and that its cornerstone is the "best interest of the child". Examining these principles against the Australian system's current-day operation was the broad objective of this research project.