Family Justice review supports shared parenting

The Government's response to the Family Justice Review has been welcomed by Families Need Fathers as a clear step forward in England and Wales, which may also lead eventually to changes in Scottish family law.

Families Need Fathers agrees that disputes about parenting arrangements are best settled out of court, and support the Government’s proposals to increase the frequency and strength of private family arrangements. However, there will always be a sizeable minority of intractable cases where court becomes unavoidable, and it is in these cases that today’s recommendations mark a positive development for the family justice system.

Key proposals include the intention to introduce a legislative statement on the importance of children having an ongoing relationship with both parents following separation wherever possible, and a desire to strengthen enforcement sanctions where court orders are breached.

Ken Sanderson, CEO of Families Need Fathers, commented, “The proposals announced today will help to improve public confidence in the family justice system. By reinforcing the law’s commitment to ensure children benefit from the love and support of both parents following separation, the Government will help to ensure that it is not children who continue to be punished when acrimony between separating parents is played out in the courts.”

“This is not a question of equally dividing time, but of ensuring that children get to benefit from the full involvement of both parents following family breakdown. We support the Government’s belief that developing legislation emphasizing the importance of both parents in a child’s life is complimentary to the welfare needs of the child, and hope that this will be the beginning of a process of reform that will see the development of a family justice system fit for the needs of children and their families.”

Other important proposals include the replacement of ‘contact’ and ‘residence’ orders, which encourage a ‘winner takes all’ mentality in private family law disputes, with ‘child arrangements orders’, which are more child focused. However, the decision to continue requiring grandparents to apply for permission before they can make an application to court to see their grandchildren indicates that there is still work to be done to ensure that the rights of children to a relationship with their wider family is adequately protected.

Ian Maxwell, National Manager of Families Need Fathers Scotland, said, “The proposed overhaul of the law on parenting will apply only to England and Wales but the issues that are being addressed there are utterly relevant in Scotland too.

There are slow but sure signs that the message is getting through to sheriffs and to the professionals involved in Scotland that children have a right to a good, loving and supportive relationship with both parents after separation. A presumption of shared parenting as the starting point for arrangements after separation will nip many of the expensive and emotionally destructive child contact battles that we see in the bud and be better for the wellbeing of the children involved.  We will press for similar reform in Scotland.

It is interesting to see that England and Wales are proposing the intoroduction of parenting agreements that will' help ensure better recognition of the joint role of parents within wider society'. 'Parenting Plans' already exist in Scotland but is our experience that they are often given little priority by lawyers when parents separate or divorce. We will write to the Scottish Government inviting them to remind parents as well as legal professionals that 'parenting plans' are an important tool in focussing attention at an early stage on the importance of setting aside conflict in the interests of the children.”

Shared parenting is the term used to cover the desirability of both parents having equal status in the discussion about residence and contact after separation. It does not necessarily mean children literally spend half their time with one parent and half with the other though there are successful examples where that has been the outcome.