On 21 December, The House of Commons published a briefing paper which provides brief information in response to some key questions regarding the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on separated families, maintenance arrangements and access to children.
The parliamentary briefing titled "Coronavirus: Separated Families and Contact with Children in Care FAQs (UK)" addresses several issues answering the question "Can children move between the homes of separated parents?" as per below.
Can children move between the homes of separated parents?
Local restriction tier 1-4 guidance for England from 2 December 2020 (updated 19 December) states that exemptions from gatherings limits in all tiers include that for the purposes of “arrangements where children do not live in the same household as both their parents or guardians”. This includes moving between tiers for the same purpose.
In response to the initial UK Government guidance issued in March, the President of the Family Division of the High Court (England and Wales) noted that the guidance does not mean that children must move between homes, the decision being one for parents to take after assessing their circumstances (bold original):
Government guidance issued alongside the Stay at Home Rules on 23rd March deals specifically with child contact arrangements. It says:
“Where parents do not live in the same household, children under 18 can be moved between their parents’ homes.”
This establishes an exception to the mandatory ‘stay at home’ requirement; it does not, however, mean that children must be moved between homes. The decision whether a child is to move between parental homes is for the child’s parents to make after a sensible assessment of the circumstances, including the child’s present health, the risk of infection and the presence of any recognised vulnerable individuals in one household or the other.
The guidance from the Family Division has not since been updated. Guidance issued by the Governments of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland states that where parents do not live in the same household, children can be moved between their parents’ homes.
GOV.UK Stay at Home Guidance has also been updated stating that
There are several ways that parents and carers can continue to access childcare in Tier 4 areas:
- parents are able to form a childcare bubble with one other household for the purposes of informal childcare, where the child is 13 or under
- some households will also be able to benefit from being in a support bubble
Daily we continue to be told of parents who are finding that their ex is exploiting the situation. It is always better to separate amicably or at least to make child arrangements for shared parenting that serve the best interests of the children.
The risk to the parent who denies child-parent time without adequate justification is made clear in the guidance from The President of the Family Division, Sir Andrew McFarlane.
Sir Andrew’s guidance states: “If, after the event, the actions of a parent acting on their own in this way are questioned by the other parent in the Family Court, the court is likely to look to see whether each parent acted reasonably and sensibly in the light of the official advice and the Stay at Home Rules in place at that time, together with any specific evidence relating to the child or family” Government also states: “Where parents do not live in the same household, children under 18 can be moved between their parents' homes.”
We want to use this occasion to remind you about our guidance which promotes collaboration and gives guidance on what to do if that fails to result in progress.
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