Child Living Arrangements

A Child Arrangements Order specifies who the child is to live with and whom they will be spending their time with. If, for instance, the Court makes a Child Arrangements Order in favour of someone who is not the parent or guardian of the child, that person will then have parental responsibility for the child while that arrangement remains in force.

The ‘residence’ aspect of a Child Arrangements Order can last until the child reaches 18 years unless discharged earlier by the Court or by the making of a Care Order.

• Live with – the Court can decide which parent the child will live with, or if they will live equally with both parents.
• Spend time with – when parents cannot agree on the arrangements for the child to spend time with the parent they do not live with, the Court can decide the exact timings.

Most people will be more familiar with the terms residence/custody and contact/access. These terms have been replaced with ‘live with’ and ‘spend time with’.

The Court can also make orders to resolve issues, including:

• • Prohibited Steps Order – to prevent a parent from acting in a particular manner or to stop them doing something, such as taking the child to live in another country
  • Specific Issue Order – when parents cannot resolve an issue about the child’s upbringing, such as religion, education or holidays
  • International child maintenance – if your ex-partner lives abroad and has stopped paying child maintenance, you can apply to the Court to get help in enforcing payments.

Mothers and fathers (with or without parental responsibility) can apply for any of the above orders. Parents who have adopted a child can also apply.

Generally, all other people must apply to the Court for permission to make the application. Exceptions are grandparents, or if the child has lived with a person for more than three of the last five years.

Parents are encouraged to make decisions themselves, if possible, but if they cannot agree the Court will make a final decision. The welfare of the child will be the most important factor and any order will only be made if it is in the child’s best interest.

Yes, if this is the best scenario for your child/children, then the Court will almost always approve this. Arrangements can be changed if circumstances change, the Court will change to what is in the best interests of the child/children.

You do not have to agree to anything, especially, if you or the Court thinks there are risks involved for the child or to the parent.

If you are not comfortable agreeing to an arrangement then we suggest that you take legal advice. We are aware that sometimes parents who are leaving abusive relationships can sometimes feel bullied by either the father or abusive parent into agreeing to an arrangement they are not comfortable with.

It’s important that children are not asked who to choose between and should avoid exposure to conflict at all costs. However, as children get older they are more likely to want to have a say in where they live and who they spend the majority of their time with. This can be achieved by parents listening to what their child/children want and adapting to changes of arrangements.

However, if the Court has to take control and decide what’s best for the child then their wishes and feelings would be relevant, depending on their age.

A parenting plan is a written agreement between parents (sometimes other members of the family) setting out arrangements (which might not just be the arrangements for contact) for a child.

Whilst a parenting plan is not formally approved by a Court, it can usually be helpful to note these arrangements down, especially as it can provide good evidence of the intentions of the parents if an application ever has to be made to a Court at a later date.

No, grandparents and other members of the family do not have automatic rights to see the child. However, there are steps grandparents and other family members can take to get access and can try to see their grandchild through:

• An informal, family-based arrangement with both parents
• Mediation

Grandparents and other family members can apply to the Courts for permission to spend time with the child, this is usually given unless it’s not in the best interest of the child.

To apply for a Contact Order, the Courts will consider the following:

• The applicant’s connection with the child
• The nature of the application for contact
• Whether the application might be potentially harmful to the child’s well-being in any way

If one or both parents raise objections then you are likely to have to attend a full hearing in which both parties can then put forward their evidence.