Custody of Children
We offer initial legal advice on custody of children and can help you with a Child Arrangement Order. Call our Child Law Solicitors on 03306069626 or contact us online and we will help you.
Child Custody Court Orders in England & Wales
If you and your ex are having any child custody problems related to:
- Agreeing who your child/children should live with
- Agreeing the time a child/children should spend with the other parent
- Agreeing on a specific child/children care, school, medical or religious issue
You should understand the legal options available through these Court Orders:
- Child Arrangement Order
- Specific Issue Order
- Prohibited Steps Order
Child Arrangement Orders
Formerly called Child Contact and Residence Orders. Agreeing what’s right for the children when parents separate it can be difficult to agree:
- Which parent the child/children should live with
- When and how much time kids spend with the parent they don't live with
- Changing a child’s name or school, any religious or medical treatment issues
A Child Arrangements Order can set out:
- Arrangements for where a child lives either with a parent or a non-parent.
- Arrangements for a child to spend time with or otherwise have contact with a person they don't live with. This is often the non-resident parent.
When dealing with a Child Arrangements Order application, the Court will take the stance that it is generally better for a child/children if a parent is involved in their lives.
Specific Issue Orders
A Specific Issue Order can be applied for to ask the Court to resolve a disagreement about any matter related to Parental Responsibility. For example:
- Which school the child/children should go to
- Whether the child/children should receive medical treatment
- How religion should be included in the child/children’s upbringing.
- Whether the parent with care can take the child to live abroad
If you want to take a child that lives with you abroad this is a complex matter with extra factors that the Court must consider. It could be a criminal offence to take a child out of England or Wales without the right consent or Court Order, so it’s important to get legal advice beforehand.
Prohibited Steps Orders
A Prohibited Steps Order can ask the Court to prevent one parent taking a particular action related to Parental Responsibility. For example:
- Preventing the child/children associating with someone with adverse influence
- Preventing the child/children being permanently removed from the UK
- Preventing medical treatment
For initial legal advice call our Children Law Solicitors on 03306069626 or contact us online and we will call you.
Solicitor Fee for Child Arrangement Orders
Our fixed hourly Solicitor fee for advising you and preparing the application to the Court for a Child Arrangement Order starts from £210 per hour including VAT. We will agree our Solicitors fee with you upfront before any work starts.
Once we have provided you with a written quote for the agreed work, that price will not change.
For other Court Orders & Injunctions see Family Law & Divorce Court Orders.
How We Can Help You
It’s beneficial to both parents and the children if you and your ex can co-operate on arrangements for the children. It’s important to ensure that the children are not involved in conflict or arguments and that their needs are put first.
Making arrangements for children can be very emotive and you may not be able to discuss matters constructively. We offer a range of legal services including Collaborative Law and Family Mediation to help you find a sensible way forward that puts the children’s needs first and avoiding the potential stress, costs and delay of Court proceedings.
However if you feel you have exhausted all attempts to agree on arrangements for your children then you may need to make an application to the Court which we can help you with.
You Can Expect Us To
- Always act with integrity and in an ethical, responsible and constructive way.
- Always deliver our services in easily accessible ways to suit you.
- Keep the bigger picture in mind to help you at every step of your case.
- Help you ensure the benefits of any steps are balanced against financial or emotional costs.
- Inform you of all your options to help you decide what is best for you.
For initial legal advice call our Child Custody Solicitors on 03306069626 or contact us online and we will help you.
As part of the Co-op Group our values of openness, honesty, social responsibility and caring for others are core to the service we provide. Our customers consistently rate the quality of our legal advice and services at 4.4 out of 5 stars. See customer reviews.
Why Choose Co-op Legal Services?
No Nasty Surprises. We will provide a written quote before we start work. The fee we quote you in writing for the agreed work is the fee you pay us.
No Legal Jargon. We will take time to understand your needs and provide clear explanations so you completely understand what’s going on every step of the way.
The family law team at Co-op Legal Services includes specialist Family Solicitors, Divorce Solicitors and Children Law Solicitors with Resolution Accreditation and Resolution accredited experts in child abduction, co-habitation, domestic abuse, property disputes, high net worth money matters and financial advocacy.
Co-op Legal Services has offices in Manchester, Bristol and London.
