When parents separated it has been known for a parent with the main care of the child to move to another area of the Country for example from Leeds to London or even to another Country i.e Spain. This often leaves the child and the other parent bereft of any contact with each other. If you find yourself in a situation like this there are a number of options available to you.
In the first instance if you become aware that your ex-partner is intending to relocate with your children then you can make an application to the Court either on an urgent basis or if appropriate without giving the other parent any notice of your application, at all. The application that you would need to make would be a Prohibited Steps Application applying to the Court to prohibit your ex-partner from removing your children from i.e there current home, school or in a broader case the jurisdiction of England and Wales.
It is very often the case that your ex-partner may not give you any notice of their intentions until they have actually relocated. If you have parental responsibility and they have left England and Wales without your consent and/or over stayed at a holiday destination then you can contact a Solicitor for urgent advise on “Child Abduction”, how they advise you will depend upon your situation and the Country which your child is currently in. You do need to act quickly and obtain urgent legal advice if your find yourself in this situation.
If your children live in another Country then it is possible for you to have indirect contact during term time and direct contact during school holidays.
Indirect Contact – When your child lives in another Country
Ultimately Indirect contact is any way that you can communicate with your children without you both being physically present together at the same time examples of this are; by telephone, by way of letters and also now by way of Skype. In an interesting article reported by the Telegraph the Judge considered one of the reasons for preventing a child from moving from the jurisdiction of England and Wales was due to the fact that the absent parent “cannot hug over Skype”, this amongst other considerations brought him to his decision to prevent the child from being removed from the jurisdiction, if you would like to read the article in full, click here.
Direct Contact – When your Child lives in another Country
As children are required to attend school, which now due to the tighter regulations is mandatory and there is very little scope for schools to agree with children taking holidays during term time this reduces Direct Contact to school holidays. Direct Contact is when you have physical contact with your children, it may be appropriate for either, you to travel to them or them to you. Logistically there will be costs involved and this could lead to disputes between parents, however it is considered best for the children if the parents can resolve this as amicable as possible. If you are in a situation similar to this then it is possible for a Mediator to assist you to try and come to a compromise. Alternatively a Specialist Solicitor may be able to assist.