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When you are stopped from seeing your children its heartbreaking and distressing but Countrywide Family mediation can help resolve issues and work out plans to resume child access.

Stopped from having access to your children?

Countrywide Family mediation is the perfect place to start as it enables a safe, honest conversation to take place and work through the issues so children can see both parents equally.

When couples go through a difficult separation or divorce, tensions can sometimes run high which may ultimately lead to a breakdown in communication. This can affect not only the adults but the children as well. There may also be situations where one partner may be stopped from having access to the children, either because their ex-spouse is trying to punish them or no longer wants to have contact with them at all.

This can be difficult because the children will likely feel torn between the parents and denied access to someone whom they love. In such situations, family mediation may be of help. A mediator can assist the family by arranging separate times where the children can spend time with each of the parents without the parents having to see each other at all.

Making Child Arrangements

Mediation first for child matters

It may be possible to arrange visitations in a neutral area or to have a third party, such as a mutual friend, arrange for pick up and drop off of the children.

Of course, this type of arrangement is only short-term and eventually the parents will have to communicate in order to make important decisions regarding the children’s future.

Countrywide family mediation will be able to help the parties put aside their differences and reach a common ground to provide stability for themselves and their children. However, if mediation fails, or if one partner is still being denied access to the children, legal intervention may be necessary and you will need a MIAM before proceeding to court

With legal intervention, one or both parties may hire a solicitor to represent them in negotiations regarding child custody and financial settlements. If these negotiations fail to reach a resolution, the courts will get involved at this point. The solicitors will make the appropriate application to court, setting out each parties’ requests, which will be reviewed and settled by a judge. Any decision made by the judge will be handed down as a court order, which is legally binding, and both parties are compelled to obey it.

The judge may hand down a Child Arrangements Order, which dictates with whom the child is to live and the specific terms of visitation rights. Having a case adjudicated by the courts often causes further strain on the relationship as the judge cannot force the parties to be on friendly terms. It may also cause a financial strain as the solicitors will need to be paid for their work. In addition, one party may feel very dissatisfied with the decisions handed down, especially if they did not receive as much visitation rights as they requested.

The good news is that the parties do have the option of returning to mediation as situations change and the children grow older. This may help them to work out their differences and come to an arrangement that benefits everyone.

It always best avoid conflict and court and try mediation first. Contact us today

If you believe that family mediation might be a helpful tool in your current family situation, you must call Countrywide Mediation today.