Hiya everyone. I the dad walked away 3 years ago, with my two boys after an eventful marraige. Six weeks later I went back home with them after the mum left as I managed to buy her outbof our family home. Since then its been a 50/50 split and has worked well for the boys. Of late my eldest who is 10 has said that he wants to spend more time with his mum as he misses her. Basically the ex wife & her live in mother are playing with his mind, telling him lies and making me out to be someone that im not. It's all to hide her previous alcoholism and mental health issues but to the detriment of my relationship with my eldest. Ive now been told that he is staying with her for the foreseable future yet my youngest can stick to the 50/50 arrangement. Police, social services and the school are all invilved but nothing is really happening.
My worry is they get into his mind so much that he stays with them lunatics full time and my youngest who is 6 will be next on their list of tasks. No doubt CSA will be contacting me in due course however where donI stand as I want the kids 100% of the time yet im happy to share 50/50 for their welfare??? Can I do as she has done and say that my youngest will be living with me for the foreseable future which he has expressed he wants to do? Thank you in advance.
You can make an urgent application to the court to have your son returned to your care, that's assuming you didn't have a court order already in place? If your son has lived with you all this time, the court would have to be given good reason for allowing a change of residency and if there have been previous issues with alcoholism, that's a potential safeguarding risk.
To do this, you need to get a form C100 and make an application for an urgent Child Arrangement Order to say where your son should live and a Prohibited Steps Order to prevent the mother removing him from your care. The fee is 215 (or look at form EX160a for exemption and reductions if you're on a low income). You would take the form to court in person and wait to either be seen or for a judge to set a hearing. The quicker you act, the more chance you have of having him returned so that he doesn't have time to settle.
There is a part on the form about attending mediation, for an urgent application you are exempt from attending.
you can pm any of us mods if you need signposting or help with the forms etc.
Have a look through our stickies for advice on self repping in court.
Good luck
Thank you so much. Greatly appreciated.