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Easter and Passover time to refresh and rewind
Easter is synonymous with hope and new beginnings.
Schools are soon going to break up for the Easter holidays and over the next couple of weeks parents across the country will be planning to take their children away for a spring holiday. But for parents who are separated or divorced, organising holidays with their can prove a source of friction.
For some Easter is a religious holiday and this in itself can be a cause of friction. Is it possible for you to reach an agreement on with which parent the children will spend the religious days?
Perhaps as Easter and Passover approach it is time for a rethink and refresh your approach. How can your new status as a separated family be managed to work for the benefit of the children?
This can be a difficult time for children dividing their time between two homes. If parents are not able to agree arrangements, it can result in tense and emotional discussions, leaving both parties feeling aggrieved and unsatisfied.
It is easy to lose sight of the fact that holidays are there to benefit the children, rather than the parents. Unfortunately, often one or both parents lose focus and turn discussions into a purely mathematical exercise attempting to slice the holiday in two. This approach may not be in the bests interests of children and there may be specific events which one family has planned.
Particular thought needs to be given to international families who want to travel to another country, either for a holiday or to spend a special occasion (such as the child’s birthday) with extended family that may live abroad. In these cases, the “left behind” parent, particularly if they don’t have a new partner or family of their own nearby, can find it incredibly difficult being away from their children at these important times, especially for the first time. Parents wanting to take their children abroad must remember to obtain the consent of each party with parental responsibility before they leave the country. Failure to do so could result in unnecessary court proceedings or even criminal action.
As a general rule, the courts recognise the benefit in children spending alternate Christmases, Easters and sometimes birthdays, with each parent. There are occasions when the parent with care, which is often but not always the mother, is reluctant to accept this as a principle. This is because they will have spent every Christmas/birthday with their children while the family were still together and they will perceive any change to this routine as detrimental or unfair.
It is essential that the children remain in the forefront of everyone’s minds when discussions take place about the division of childcare generally and during the school holidays. If you and your ex-partner are not able to agree matters yourselves, there are a number of organisations who can help. You do not need to involve solicitors immediately if this will increase the conflict and be perceived as adversarial. We refer many clients to mediators, family therapists or counsellors to help facilitate discussions between them and their ex-partner. Generally, the more amicable discussions can remain, the more likely parents will remain focussed on what is best for the children, rather than on winning the battle they believe they have with their ex-partner surrounding holiday contact.
Lindsay Jones Divorce lawyer is a Divorce Solicitor, specialist family law and divorce solicitor in Altrincham, Middlewich, solicitors in Holmes Chapel, solicitors in Sandbach, solicitors in Northwich, solicitors in Winsford Cheshire, Cheshire Divorce Solicitor, divorce solicitors Middlewich, solicitors Holmes Chapel, solicitors Sandbach, solicitors Northwich, solicitors Winsford, solicitor Cheshire, Cheshire Divorce solicitors, Knutsford Divorce Solicitors, Divorce solicitors, Family Solicitors, Middlewich solicitors, Northwich solicitors, Knutsford solicitors, Lindsay Jones Solicitor, celebrity divorce solicitors, divorce and family law solicitors Cheshire, online divorce solicitors, lawyer for divorce, solicitor for divorce.