[Solved] can my ex change my access with little notice?

Hi si78,

Welcome to the forum. I'm sorry to hear you are having access problems - I will ask our Legal Partners the Children's Legal Centre to look in on this query and respond for you.

Has you access up to now been a private agreement or was it decided in court ?

It may take a few days for the CLC to respond but in the meantime it maybe worth looking at responses they have already made on other threads regarding access and I'm sure other members of the DadTalk community will offer you their advice as well.

Cheers

Gooner

Hello, thank you for help. The arrangement was a private one, although as we have filed for divorce in the past it was agreed for that and by solicitors. The divorce has took a setback due to financial restrictions.
Thank you again for your help.

Dear Si78,

Whether or not your ex partner is able to alter the contact that you have with your children will depend on the situation.

If there is no court order in place for contact and your children live with their mother, then she will be able to control any and all contact that you have with the children until they are able to decide for themselves (absolutely at 16 years old) or a court order is put into place.

This is because the mother is the resident parent and the right to contact belongs to a child, not a parent, but your children are not able to decide what is best for themselves at their ages so it does fall to the person that they live with to make these decisions.

An agreement, even if made with solicitors, is not legally binding and can not be enforced, although this can be used if the matter goes to court to show what was agreed and the court may choose to put a similar arrangement into place.

If you are not happy with the contact that you are being given by the mother, then the first step is to attempt to negotiate with her, using mediation if necessary. If this is not successful, then the option that you will have for gaining further contact is to make an application to court for a contact order.

You are able to apply to court either yourself or using a solicitor, whichever you prefer, and the court will hear of all of the circumstances that you place before them, as well as hearing the mother’s view and considering reports from any third parties, such as CAFCASS or Social Services if they are involved.

Following this, the court will make a decision based on what they believe to be best for your children, and what contact they feel is appropriate. It is very rare that some form of contact is not granted, but it will be for the court to decide what amount is best for your children. All decisions are made based on the best interests of the children in question, however contact is granted in the vast majority of cases so long as it is safe for the children to have contact.

A court order is legally binding, meaning that any contact that is granted in the order must be allowed by the mother, and you are able to apply for enforcement if she does not allow this and she may be penalised by the court.

We hope that this information is useful to you. Should you require any further advice please contact the Child Law Advice Line on 0808 8020 008 and an advisor will be happy to assist you.

Kind Regards
Children’s Legal Centre
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Thank you for the reply, could someone please tell me how to go about getting a application for a court order. Many thanks.

Hi Si78,

You are able to apply to the court yourself or using a solicitor. If you wish to use a solicitor it is a matter of making an appointment with a solicitor in your local area and discussing this matter with them.

In order to get an application for a court order yourself, you are able to download the relevant forms, form C100, CB1 and CB3 from www.hmcs.gov.uk .

The C100 form is the application for a contact order, and the CB1 and CB3 are guidance on completing that form, the court proceedings and other useful information.

Once you have downloaded these forms, you are able to file these at the Family Proceedings Court closest to the children’s homes, and there will be a filing fee of £175.

Following this the court will make you and the mother aware of the dates you must attend.

We hope this answers your query, if you require further advice please contact the Child Law Advice Line on 0808 8020 008 and an advisor will be happy to help you.

Kind Regards
Children’s Legal Centre