If your partner has always dealt with the finances in your household, as a lone parent you may find the prospect of dealing with this issue quite daunting.
DO NOT PANIC !!!!!!
Looking after the finances in your home is far easier than you might think.
See the step-by-step guide to help you overcome this minor obstacle.

The Bank Account
If your partner leaves you unexpectedly and you have not had the opportunity to plan for the separation it will be necessary for you to contact your Bank if you have a joint bank account to advise them of the separation.

If you have a joint bank account then the Bank may wish to freeze the account pending joint instructions regarding the funds in the account. If joint written instructions can be given to the Bank to confirm that the Bank account may continue to operate as before, then this will be acceptable in most circumstances.

If the account is in credit then you will be required to provide instructions signed by both you and your partner as to how the funds are to be distributed. You may probably decide to open your own bank account with the agreed amount of funds to be transferred into your account from the joint account.

If the joint account is overdrawn then the Bank will probably freeze the account to crystallise the position and will seek your joint instructions as to how the debt is to be repaid or re-distributed.

You will need to consider what standing orders/direct debits, which were paid from the joint account, are to be set up on your own account. In the case of direct debits, new mandates will need to be obtained from the originating companies.

If you have your own bank account then it will not be necessary to advise the Bank of your change in circumstances.

If you do not have a Bank account then it would be advisable to shop around for the Bank that suits your needs most. Most banks offer free banking for their personal customers and the charges vary for overdrafts and loans. If you prefer to monitor your bank account via the internet then an Internet Bank may be of interest to you.

How to make ends meet.
You will need to ascertain what funds you have available to you at present and how much income is required to cover your living expenses. You will also need to know how much your partner is prepared to pay you in the future.

To calculate your monthly expenses follow the guide below: -

Amount per month (where applicable) for

GAS
ELECTRICITY
COUNCIL TAX
WATER RATES
RENT OR MORTGAGE
TV LICENCE
HOUSE INSURANCE
CAR INSURANCE
OTHER INSURANCE POLICIES
PAYMENTS FOR CAR LOAN
PETROL
FOOD
CAR TAX
TELEPHONE
CHILDCARE
SCHOOL EXPENSES
ENTERTAINMENT
CLOTHES
OTHER EXPENSES

TOTAL

Having ascertained the amount of your monthly expenditure you can now compare this to your monthly income figure to calculate whether you have a surplus or deficit of income over expenditure. If you have a shortfall then there may be ways in which you can reduce your monthly outgoings.

You can apply to the Courts for your ex partner to pay maintenance for yourself and if you want your partner to pay maintenance for your children then you have to apply to the Child Support Agency (CSA).

The CSA will assess how much your partner should pay for the children but if your partner refuses to pay or stops paying then the following can be done: -

- Both the CSA and the court can make your partner's employer (if they are working) deduct a certain amount from his/her salary to meet the maintenance payments.

- If your partner owns another property you may be able to put a "Charge" on the property so that when the property is sold he / she has to pay the arrears of maintenance from the sale proceeds. You may be able to apply to the court for an early sale of the property once you have obtained a Charge.

- If a third party owes money to your partner the court can order that the third party pays some or all of the money to you.

- If you are warned that your partner is moving money between bank accounts and is trying to hide details of his / her finances you can obtain a court order to freeze the accounts or stop them moving money out of the country before the court has had a chance to decide how to divide the assets.

- You can apply to the court for your partner to be sent to prison if he / she continues to refuse to pay maintenance.

The Mortgage.
If you need to obtain a mortgage for the first time or you need to re-mortgage, then the market is able to offer you a wide variety of mortgage deals.

The obvious places to start with are the Banks and Building Societies and you will be able to speak to a Mortgage Advisor who is qualified to talk to you about their mortgage products.

As with your bank account, if you have the time, then shop around for the best deal that suits your personal circumstances. There are a range of websites to visit to assist you with your search for the right product.