As the weather hit sub-zero last week, many families also began to feel the chill in their home life. December has become a common time when people make the difficult decision to end a relationship.

We understand that divorce and separation is one of the hardest situations a person can experience. When there are children involved, this adds an extra layer of frost to the separation. Figures from the Department of Education published this year reveal that number of children recommended for mental health support has risen from 57,410 in 2018, to 87,750. Comparatively, divorces have almost doubled this year compared to last year.

At our firm we seek to resolve the issues between parents outside of Court as often as possible. We place importance on narrowing the issues and seeking a resolution that it is in the best interests of both our client and their children. Christmas is frequently a contentious period, particularly when deciding which parent children should spend Christmas with. We have been successful in promoting agreement between parents about sharing Christmas with their children and avoiding making an application to a Court for a Judge to decide. Timetabling issues will often not be decided by a Judge at all.

We understand that parents should be able to make the decisions about their child’s life as far as it is practicably possible. When advising a client on a matter involving children, we prefer to look for the solutions rather than focusing on the issues. A common solution to parents who are separated but both wish to celebrate their child’s birthday, is to split the day in two. This allows their child to feel like they have two families, and feel loved by both parents equally. At our firm, our attitude is to encourage co-parenting, where it is safe for the child to do so.

If you need advice on celebrating Christmas with your child even if you are separated, get in touch with us today. Currently, we are offering a free initial telephone consultation with our family team for new enquires. During this call we will tell you what we can do next to get started. Give our family solicitors a call now for a friendly chat on 020 8735 9770 or email our family law department at info@hpwsolicitors.co.uk