The Children & Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass) has issued guidance in relation to children and families who are currently or may in the future be affected by the coronavirus outbreak.
The advice issued covers the following:
How to effectively co-parent and co-ordinate childcare arrangements
Whilst the Government advice on children spending time with separated parents during the coronavirus lockdown has previously been a little unclear, it is generally believed that children under the age of 18 years can spend time with parents who do not live with one another, as long as they have not contracted or are displaying any symptoms of the coronavirus.
As such, Cafcass have advised for separated parents to work together in an amicable manner during these difficult times so that their child’s health and welfare is their main focus.
Further advice and guidance from Cafcass’s National Improvement Service can be found here.
Information in relation to Cafcass’s remote working systems
The guidance also states that Cafcass closed their offices at the beginning of this week and the majority of their employees are working remotely.
As a means of still conducting interviews with parents and children, they are promoting the use of video conferencing, such as Skype or FaceTime.
The impact of the pandemic on contact centres and Court hearings
Guidance issued by the President of the Family Court has stated that all hearings will take place remotely, and that parties and their legal representatives will be issued with additional information on what this means for them and their case.
With regards to contact centres, a number of them have had to close down due to concerns surrounding the health and safety of children and their families as a result of the coronavirus. However, whilst some have had to close down, a large number of contact centres have remained open as they have deemed that it is safe and appropriate to do so. Although, should their circumstances change concerning the virus, then they may be forced to close also.
How Nelsons can help
Melanie Bridgen is a Partner in our Family Law team.
At Nelsons, we have a full team of expert family lawyers who are able to advise on child arrangements during isolation, keeping fully up-to-date with Government advice and, predominantly, the health, safety and welfare of children and their families.
For further information, please contact Melanie or another member of the team in Derby, Leicester or Nottingham on 0800 024 1976 or via our online form.