When you split with your ex, it can be difficult to reach an agreement about contact with your children. If the split is acrimonious, you may find that you are being denied contact altogether or that the mother of the child doesn’t offer frequent or reliable contact. As a loving father, it will be important to you to ensure that your children are able to see you as often as possible, so when communication has broken down between you and the other parent, you may be left with no choice other than to apply to the court for a contact order.
The order that you end up with will be one that suits your particular family situation and the needs of your children so no two cases are the same. That being said, there is a standard process that all court cases will go through. The court will make one or more of a number of orders under the Children Acr 1989 to allow your children to enjoy a good relationship with both parents.
The main concern of the court is the wellbeing of the children involved in the process. Whilst you may feel that at times you are being treated unfairly by the court, you must remember that they have to take their time and ensure that the child will be safe and happy with the arrangement that is made.
If you are applying for a contact order, this will specify how much time the child should spend with the non resident parent.
Mediation
In most cases, the court will expect you to attend a MIAM. This is an initial mediation meeting where you will be told about mediation as an alternative to using the court. It is not compulsory that your ex attends one if you are the one applying, but you must at least attend this. There is a page in the application form that must be signed by the mediator to say that you have attended. Unless there are certain circumstances, the MIAM is compulsory and you may not be able to move forward with your application unless you have attended one.
The Application
Applying to the court will vary depending on where you live. You may have to apply to the High Court, County Court or Family Proceedings Court. Sometimes, you may be able to post the completed forms. Other courts allow email communication but a lot of people like to make the application in person so that they know that it has arrived at the right place.
When you submit a court form, you usually need to send 4 copies:
- One is sent back to you, the applicant
- One is for the respondent (usually your ex/the other parent)
- One for CAFCASS
- One for the court
The court will decide on a suitable date for the first hearing and will send your form back, along with other court paperwork. It is important to make any arrangements that you need to so that you do not miss any hearings. If you don’t attend the court for any reason – even if it an emergency, it is normal for the court to make an order in your absence and this may mean that you don’t have a say in what happens during that hearing.
CAFCASS Involvement
Once the date of the first hearing has been set and you have received your paperwork, you may hear from a CAFCASS worker. You can learn more about CAFCASS on our site or by visiting their website.
CAFCASS are very important people when it comes to the court process as they advise the court about what action the court takes. Sometimes, the court may make an order that doesn’t reflect the recommendations of CAFCASS, but a lot of the time, they rely heavily on CAFCASS involvement.
Usually, CAFCASS are asked to provide a safeguarding letter to the court ahead of your hearing. This will often include the CAFCASS worker making a telephone call with you and your ex and talking to you about things like whether social services have had any involvement with the children and if there are any past police incidents that they should be made aware of. This information will then be completed and sent back to the court in advance of the first hearing.
The First Hearing or FHDRA
The First Hearing is often referred to as a FHDRA. This stands for First Hearing Dispute Resolution Appointment. This hearing is usually very short and allows the court to summarise exactly what it is that you have applied for in your application. Sometimes, the court decides that an order will not be necessary and in that case, they will explain that it is not relevant and that they will ignore the request. This may be for example, a prohibited steps order to prevent the other parent from moving out of the area and the other parent explains that they have changed their mind and won’t be moving.
The FHDRA questions whether an agreement can be made there and then and sometimes an interim order may be granted.
If no resolution is made, the judge will usually ask the CAFCASS worker to create a report. This report making can take a long time so it is wise to ask the court to make an interim order for contact. You may not end up with the contact that you want at this point, but make sure that you don’t argue with the judge’s decision. You need to be seen as willing to see your children at any cost and turning up to every available contact session on time and being amicable with your ex will show the court that you will be a reliable parent in your child’s life. When a more permanenet order is made once the report has been made, you will be in a better position to get what you were originally asking for.
What Is In A CAFCASS Report?
You and your ex will need to be interviewed by the CAFCASS worker. They will also sometimes want to observe the relationship between the parents and the child. They speak to both the parents and they will also contact the school. Occasionally, they will speak to other family members too. If your child is a little older, the CAFCASS worker will also interview the child so that the child’s wishes can also be taken into account.
The report will be sent to you and your ex. You will be sent exactly the same report as the one that is passed to the court so that you will have the chance to make some notes before you go to court if you need to. The CAFCASS worker will usually make a recommendation for contact arrangements in the report.
There is usually another hearing to discuss the outcome of the report. This is not usually very long and sometimes the court will not make an order at this hearing. You may be asked to write a position statement to explain why you agree or disagree with the report.
Final Hearing
If an agreement hasn’t already been made between the parents or if they do not agree with the recommendations by the CAFCASS worker, then there will be a final hearing. The court will give the parents the chance to explain their feelings about the outcome and to put forward any evidence that they may have. Occasionally, witnesses may be called. At the end of this hearing, an order for contact is made.
This process can be a lengthy one. You must understand this and the reason why court should only be used as a last resort. Although at times, you may feel as though the other parent is being favoured above you, in actual fact, it is the child’s needs that must be met and not the parents.
If you disagree with the order made by the court, you can make an appeal within a certain timeframe. If you do not make the appeal or if it is unsuccessful, you will have to try the order for a little while and then you can make another application. Making another application to the court will mean that you will have to go through all of this again, but if it results in frequent and substantial contact with your children, then the end outcome will be worth it.
