The Festive Period: Fun or Fighting? was originally published on 17 December 2019
The festive period, especially Christmas Day, can often be a difficult time of year for separated parents who both want to enjoy this special time with your child or children, but not necessarily together!
We have a few pointers on how to try and ensure this period of time runs smoothly for you all:
- Try to agree specific dates and times for contact to take place in advance to ensure everyone can make their own, uninterrupted, plans with the children.
- Make sure the plans are in your child’s best interest, not what is convenient to you. Your child or children will probably have exciting school activities during the fesitive period or may want to see extended family in person; stopping them from doing so may risk upsetting them as well as making things difficult between the adults.
- On the ‘big days’ for example Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, if you can’t reach an agreement on who the children should spend time with consider splitting the day in half and alternating this annually.
It would be our advice to discuss the arrangements well in advance but it’s never too late to start!
The MannBenham family law team appreciate that it may not be that simple for everyone and if you are unable to communicate directly we’d be happy to assist. Any time of year, but especially during the festive period, it is often important to everyone and if an agreement can’t be reached this can provoke emotional reactions from all parties. It’s important to remember that whatever the dispute, the children should not be exposed to the conflict.
Our dedicated team of Family Advocates are would be happy to help you in any way we can, contact the office on 01624 639350 or email the team at [email protected] for a free initial consultation.
