Child matters

We can help and advise any family member in relation to any legal issues concerning children, not just parents. We commonly work on behalf of parents, grandparents, aunties and uncles, and extended family members.

Whether you are in the process of separating, having difficulties in seeing a child, or finding it difficult in reaching an agreement with the person caring for a child about any other important issues (such as where the child will go to school), we help. We always tailor our assistance to the level of support required by you; either by simply providing straightforward advice, referring you to mediation to help you resolve matters and negotiating upon your behalf, through to preparing applications, and representing you at Court. Although every effort will be made by us to resolve issues between parties directly, we recognise that in some circumstances this will not always be possible or appropriate and our advice will always be tailored to your individual circumstances.

The law changed in April 2014 and orders which set out where a child will live and the amount of time they will spend with other people are now called child arrangement orders (formerly known as residence and contact orders). We have extensive experience in representing parties in obtaining these orders and can also assist you with a wide variety of other applications, such as an application for parental responsibility, for removal of parental responsibility, for enforcement of orders, or even in the preparation of a change of name deeds upon behalf of children.

Although the scope of legal aid has been dramatically reduced, it is still available for any cases which may involve domestic abuse by the opposing party, or where there are issues concerning the protection of children from harm or abuse. It also available for matters which involve child abduction and removal from the UK. The Legal Aid link will tell you what information you will need to bring with you to the appointment so that we can assess your eligibility.

If you are not sure what information you need to bring or whether you would qualify for legal aid, please contact us for more advice.

If you do not qualify for legal aid, we offer a range of affordable payment plans and fixed fees and are happy to discuss these with you, so that you have piece of mind in knowing what your charges will be before we undertake any work.