SSP v child maintenance

Arthur44

I have to pay child maintenance which is expected as I am a dad, my query is that from 2019 tax year to 2020 I was told I had to pay £362.56 child maintenance as this is what is worked out from my earnings, but in may 2019 I was diagnosed with evasive bladder cancer stage 3 two months into the tax year , I was SSP until December 2019 then universal credit till April and beyond, me and my partner split in January 2020 an she applied for child maintenance without even speaking to me or try to arrange some kind of payment with her, I've been off work since may 2019 until I was returning back to work in July 2020 but my company put me on furlough and this was to September when I got a new job, I was working September/October/November then put on furlough due to been an at risk person, so in 20 mths I have only worked 3 months, been off sick with the diagnosis of cancer and yet when I told child maintenance about this they said they are going on my "earnings" from 2018 to 2019 and I must pay £362.56, I am not earning this money I was on back in 2018-2019 I am now on a lower income, but my question is....should I have been paying £362.56 whilst on SSP and furlough, child maintenance have made my outgoings more than my income and I cannot afford to pay this higher amount, an this past year has been a struggle trying to gather £362.56 whilst on furlough and SSP, I cannot even afford to pay for anything for my children as this amount exceeds my pay and outgoings, specially when I've been on sick due to cancer and then furlough, and the mother is still asking for more!! Please advise on this as I do want to pay for my children but this amount is over what I can afford! Child maintenance told me if I was struggling to claim universal credit to get topped up, but I find this totally wrong to claim benefits to pay off child maintenance money, please advise.
Kind regards

Arthur

poppy12345

Try this... https://www.gov.uk/calculate-child-maintenance