Many may think that child support only covers food, shelter, clothing, medical care and education, the basic necessities of a person. However, there is more to a child’s growth and development that goes beyond these simple aspects of life.
Children’s development includes exploring hobbies and talents
Exploring new things and learning new skills is part of any person’s life. This especially applies to children who are starting to find hobbies they genuinely enjoy. Many parents acknowledge this as part of their children’s development, so they allow their children to experience extracurricular activities, usually those involving music, sports and arts. Since these may become a substantial portion of a child’s life growing up, support funds can be used to fund extracurricular activities.
Children deserve leisure time, too
Between the emotional stress of their parents’ divorce and the physical and mental exhaustion of school learning, children need time to unwind, too. Most children decompress when engaging in recreational activities, such as watching theater movies and shopping for new clothes or toys. Accordingly, several leisure activities involve spending money. If an activity benefits the child’s well-being and growth, then parents can use child support to cover it.
Support covers anything that maintains the child’s lifestyle
Support payment can also cover other expenses that would maintain the same standard of living and financial security the child had before their parents’ divorce or separation.
Navigating child support in South Carolina
No law explicitly regulates how parents should use child support. However, courts expect parents to use support funds for their child’s well-being, growth and development.
When seeking child support in South Carolina, it is important for parents to understand how courts calculate the amount of support because it gives them an overview of their financial obligations. This applies to both custodial and noncustodial parents.
