Child Arrangements Order Solicitors

Child Arrangement Orders

Many separating couples struggle to agree on their children’s living arrangements. If you are involved in a dispute about where your children will live, you will require the assistance of a family lawyer.

Your lawyer can assist you in making an application for a child arrangements order. These orders are used to decide:

• Where will your children live, and when will each parent spend time with the children
• What type of contact there will be (for instance, visits or telephone calls)

At Tinsdills, we have extensive experience helping clients apply for child arrangement orders. We will first learn about your concerns and situation to provide bespoke support that best suits you.

Family Mediation

Where disputes arise regarding children’s living arrangements, it may be possible to resolve these disagreements using family mediation sessions. During mediation, both parties can voice their opinions and needs, attempting to agree on their children’s living arrangements with the guidance of an impartial mediator.

Mediation is often a prerequisite to Court unless you are eligible for exemptions, and our team will always attempt out-of-court options first. We can settle most cases without Court processes; however, our team can support clients through Court processes if necessary.

Collaborative Law

Collaborative Law is a method for arranging legal matters and solving disputes. It is often used to help couples discuss matters following their separation, such as finances and child arrangements.

Both parties will have a solicitor represent them as part of the process. The divorcing couple and their solicitors meet as a group of four to negotiate divorce-related matters and access legal advice.

To learn more about using Collaborative Law to organise your child law matters and financial needs, please get in touch with us at Tinsdills.

Child Maintenance

Where divorcing couples have children, they may need to contact the Child Maintenance Service to arrange how their children’s living costs will be covered.

Child Maintenance is usually paid by the parent who does not live with the child or who does not live with them for the majority of the time. Where child care is shared 50/50, neither parent is responsible for paying child maintenance to the other.

We can direct you to the online CMS calculator if you want to determine how much child maintenance you are liable to pay. If you are concerned that you are paying the incorrect amount, you will need to make a referral to the CMS to resolve this.

Specific Issue Orders and Prohibited Steps Orders

Separated and divorced couples do not always agree on how their children should be raised, and at times disputes may arise. Legal intervention may be necessary if parents cannot agree on specific issues and conflict escalates.

When parents dispute specific issues related to their children’s well-being and or/ upbringing, our legal team can help clients apply for a Specific Issue Order.

These orders can be used to settle issues including:

• If a child’s name should be changed or not
• If a child should have certain vaccinations or medical treatment
• Deciding where a child should go to school
• Where one parent is seeking permission to take the child abroad

Where one parent attempts to decide on a child’s upbringing and the other disagrees, we can support the opposing parent in obtaining a Prohibited Steps Order.

Special Guardianship Orders

There may be a situation where a child can’t live with their parents. In that case, a special guardianship order can make a permanent or long-term arrangement.

While Special Guardianship Orders provide certain benefits, they are not as secure as an Adoption Order as they do not sever the legal relationship between a child and their birth parents. Therefore, it is essential to understand the implications of an application and whether it will be suitable in the short and long term.

At Tinsdills Solicitors, our family law experts can work alongside you to guide you through making a Special Guardianship Order or advise you on your options if an application has been made for your children.