Start looking ahead to the school summer holiday now!
And make suitable parenting plans well in advance, in May or June. That’s the recommendation made by National Family Mediation CEO, Jane Robey.
In the latest of her regular articles for Family Law, she explains why.
Her article outlines how a Parenting Plan works, and how flexible it can be. That’s important because as children grow up their needs change. Therefore, her advice to separated parents is to take some time right now. That way they can head off last-minute summer panic.
A number of factors force separated couples into crisis during the summer, including
- changes in established daily routines, and
- the expense of keeping family members entertained.
Pick-up, drop-offs and living arrangements can be exposed as inadequate in the long holiday period. Frustrations and resentments resurface, with children caught in the middle.
A Parenting Plan, agreed by both parents and with flexibility built in, is easier to achieve than many people think.
It’s an agreement made by separated parents, covering how the children will be supported and cared for after separation or divorce. It’s easier to agree a Plan between the two of you than many people think. Its value is that you both tailor it to suit your own circumstances.
