Grandparents And The Wider Family

Family, aunts, uncles, and grandparents are an important part of a child’s life with regards to care, love, support and warmth. During divorce, many family relationships can fall by the wayside due to anger, blame and bitterness. It is vital that this is prevented from happening. But when it does what can grandparents and the wider family do?

UK law does not give grandparents automatic rights to contact their grandchildren. However, the UK courts do recognise that grandparents are an important part of a child’s life and will consider an application for contact or custody on a case by case basis. 

This Help Guide has been written to help grandparents and the wider family with sorting out child contact and child custody. We will use the example of a grandparent in the information below but the process is the same for all the rest of the members of the wider family.  

WHAT IS THE 3 STEP PROCESS TO HAVE CONTACT WITH YOUR GRANDCHILD AND/OR APPLY FOR CUSTODY?

STEP 1 – TALK TO THE PARENT(S) OF YOUR GRANDCHILD AND TRY AND FIND A SOLUTION.

Communication between all parties is always the first step and if a solution can be found then what could be better. Harmony between the adults in a child’s life is what is always best for the child. 

STEP 2 – INVITE THE PARENT(S) OF YOUR GRANDCHILD TO MEDIATION TO SORT OUT MATTERS.

If talking directly to the parent(s) of your grandchild is NOT proving to be fruitful then you can try mediation. You can contact a mediation company and ask them to invite the parent(s) to mediation. Here a neutral mediator will help to reach an agreement between parties. 

LINK TO OUR L.I.P HELP GUIDE FOR MEDIATION

LINK TO OUR L.I.P HELP GUIDE FOR CONNECT WITH ORGANISATIONS THAT HELP WITH MEDIATION

At the end of the mediation, you will have a summary of the decisions made and agreed by both parties. This is called an outcome statement or a memorandum of understanding. If you choose to the mediation company or a solicitor can write these decisions onto a piece of paper called a draft consent agreement and send it to the court to be approved/formalised by the court and made into a legal consent order/court order. 

Please click on the link to find out more details on draft consent agreement.

LINK TO OUR L.I.P HELP GUIDE FOR YOUR DRAFT CONSENT AGREEMENT EXPLAINED (ALSO CALLED A DRAFT CONSENT ORDER OR AN INFORMAL AGREEMENT)

STEP 3 – GO THROUGH THE COURTS. 

If the first two steps above have NOT resolved matters then you can apply to the court and ask them to intervene. 

Please note you must attempt mediation because it is the law in the UK that all individuals must attend mediation (in person or online) to resolve child arrangements first before applying to the courts to resolve these matters. There are exemptions where mediation is not appropriate (where domestic violence is involved) or the mediator may conclude that your case is not suitable for mediation. If this is the case then you can take your case to the courts to determine child arrangements. 

The process of applying for child arrangements through the courts is as follows – 

• Complete form C100 – Form C100 is the form you need to complete to start court proceedings for child contact or child custody when both parties cannot agree child arrangements. You can click on the link below to access form C100 where it will go into detail how to complete it and where to send it. The topics covered are  –  

• • • What is form C100 used for?
    • Are there any government or our own L.I.P Help Guides or write ups to help you complete form C100?
    • What is the fee to send form C100 to the court and how to pay for it?
    • How to complete form C100 and where to send it.
    • Where can you find form C100/download this form?
    • When was form C100 first published and last updated?

LINK TO OUR L.I.P HELP GUIDE FOR FORM C100

• Complete form C2 – If you are a grandparent or relative of the child and you do not have parental responsibility or guardianship then you will need to ask the courts permission to submit the above C100 application. You can do this by completing form C2 and send it alongside form C100 to the court. Please click on the link below to access form C2.

LINK TO OUR L.I.P HELP GUIDE FOR FORM C2

• Use form C120 – If you need to attach a witness statement explaining your reasons why and the importance of why you are making an application then you can use form C120 which is a witness statement template designed for child contact and child custody cases. Please click on the link below to access form C120.

LINK TO OUR L.I.P HELP GUIDE FOR FORM C120

• Read our L.I.P write up for ‘a step by step account of the whole court process  of child arrangements’ – Please click on the link below to understand the court process and what you will be taken through. 

LINK TO OUR L.I.P HELP GUIDE FOR ‘A STEP BY STEP ACCOUNT OF THE WHOLE COURT PROCESS OF CHILD ARRANGEMENTS’

IF YOU GO THROUGH THE COURTS FOR CHILD CONTACT OR CUSTODY THEN WILL CAFACSS DO BACKGROUND CHECKS?

Yes they will. Cafcass are the children’s and family court advisory and support service. Cafcass is contacted whenever an application for child arrangements is made to the court by social services, during adoption, or when a form C100 application is made where both parties cannot agree child arrangements.

As soon as you have submitted your C100 application, Cafcass will do background checks on you. These checks are done prior to the first court hearing. They will and can contact social services for information about your family. They have access to the police database about your criminal activities. They can also contact healthcare providers and the children’s schools for information.

Cafcass will also call you and your grandchild’s parents separately to discuss any issues both of you have. Cafcass will then write a short safeguarding report outlining what they have found in the background checks and what concerns and issues both you and your grandchild’s parents have. Cafcass will send this report to the court 3-4 days before the first court hearing.

LINK TO OUR L.I.P HELP GUIDE FOR WHO ARE CAFCASS

WHAT WILL THE COURTS TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION WHEN A GRANDPARENT MAKES AN APPLICATION FOR CONTACT OR CUSTODY OF THEIR GRANDCHILD?

The courts will first assess the form C2 application made by a grandparent and decide whether permission should be given to submit form C100 application for child arrangements. As stated above both form C2 and C100 are often submitted together to the court for consideration.     

The court will consider – 

• The criminal past of the grandparent if there is any.
• The violent and abusive history of the grandparent if there is any.
• The child’s previous contact with the grandparent.
• How much previous contact the child had with the grandparent.
• The level of involvement the grandparent has had in the child’s life until present date.
• What is in the best interest of the child.
• How will the grandparent add to the child’s life. 
• The child’s wishes.
• The impact of the changes on the child.
• Has the child suffered any abuse, violence or neglect and could they in the future.
• The parents wishes and reasons.

When it comes to custody of a grandchild there are many other factors that come into play in addition to those above such as – 

• The ability of the grandparent to house, provide, care and protect the child.
• The ability of the grandparent to fulfil the child’s educational needs.
• The ability of the grandparent to support the child emotionally. 
• The ability of the grandparent to fulfil the child’s physical needs. 

CAN A GRANDPARENT MAKE ANY OTHER APPLICATIONS DURING/WITHIN COURT PROCEEDINGS FOR CHILD CONTACT OR CHILD CUSTODY?

Yes they can. During court proceedings for child arrangements you (the grandparent) can apply for other things/make requests/ask for directions they may want the court to consider. The form you will need to do this is form C2. Form C2 is the form used to ask the court for directions or a court order within existing court proceedings.

LINK TO OUR L.I.P HELP GUIDE FOR FORM C2

IF THERE IS A BREACH WITH A CHILD ARRANGEMENTS ORDER HOW CAN THIS BE DEALT WITH?

Once a grandparent has a court order for contact or custody of their grandchild and it is not being followed then they can apply to the court for enforcement of the court order. The form you will need to do this is form C79.

LINK TO OUR L.I.P HELP GUIDE FOR FORM C79.

CAN A GRANDPARENT APPLY TO THE COURT TO HAVE A WARNING NOTICE ATTACHED TO THEIR COURT ORDER FOR CHILD ARRANGEMENTS?

Yes they can. Form C78 is used to ask the court to attach a warning notice to a child arrangements court order. A warning notice will state that if someone does not comply with the child arrangements order, the court may fine them, imprison them for contempt of court, make an enforcement order, or an order for financial compensation. You can apply for this by submitting form C78 to the court.

LINK TO OUR L.I.P HELP GUIDE FOR FORM C78

CAN A GRANDPARENT APPLY TO HAVE THEIR CHILD ARRANGEMENTS ORDER CHANGED/VARIED?

Yes they can. The form you will need to do this is form C100.

LINK TO OUR L.I.P HELP GUIDE FOR FORM C100