Maintainance Situation Help?

GabiP

Long story ahead but I'd appreciate advice if anyone is in the know.
Unmarried couple have 3 children live in rented accommodation for approx 8 years with EHB paying the rent etc. They hide the fact that the male lives with the family and she carries on as if a single mother. She receives all the usual benefits a single mother receives, he works and earns a decent wage plus nixer earnings on a very regular basis. She minds kids for various people and earns cash from this also. They are very comfortable but the relationship is marred with violence from her to him following alcohol. She also cheats on him and tells him about it.
She has anger issues and drinks to the point where she becomes violent so eventually the Couple break up, he initially sees the children regularly, has them for weekends and anytime their Mum wants them babysat etc. He buys them clothes, gives them money etc.
The now separated couples' relationship deteriorates when he begins new relationship, she causes all sorts of problems trying to get him back or get rid of the new girlfriend etc. Drunken phone calls, letters to his parents etc. Then she turns the kids against him, they stop contact no matter how hard he tries the children are now copying their mother in bad mouthing him.
He stops paying any money. She tries to get money from him almost monthly now, often ringing at all hours drunk or hounding the secretary in his job or getting the children to ring him and ask for maintainance. He refuses in anger over what she has done to ruin the relationship with the children and now that they only contact him for money and then dont want him for anything else.
He thinks he is only named on the birth cert as the father of the eldest girl, if even that. He knows that on the other 2 childrens birthcerts it says "father unknown" because at the time they were born -th couple would have lost all their benefits if she repeatedly had children for the same guy which was him but she calimed they were all unknown dads so she could continue to screw the system.
What could happen here? He says she wont go the legal route because they would both be in trouble for taking all the benefits and EHB rent allowance all those years & that there would have to be DNA tests done to prove his being the Dad and that this would cost too much.
Could she get free legal aid? Could she have him done for maintainance without getting caught out for benefit fraud herself or is he right and the situation could stay as it is with him getting away with paying nothing?
I'm sure there's many situations like this out there. Anyone know how it could go?

snubbleste

I'd say this is more a legal issues question

GabiP

Well yea it is a legal issue but also about benefit fraud by this couple maybe the moderator will let me know. Anyone any thoughts on the situation?

Tom Young

Charter - Solicitor. Thanks.