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Dear All,
I am an unmarried father who separated from my partner when my child was six, I tried to obtain custody but the maternal grandparents got residential order and I was allowed contact for the child to stay with me on alternate weekends (I lived roughly two hours away single journey) until about two years ago when my job moved me further away and financial issues got the better of me. However during this time I spoke to my child most weekend as well as I kept all financial commitments. I am now in a position to resume my contact with my child but the grandparent is saying I can not and I have to go back to court for a revised order.
Please advise
Hi there
If you have an order for contact then this is legally binding until the child is 16. You have kept contact with the child indirectly so you haven't become a stranger to the child during the time you have been too far away. You could argue that parents that work abroad have the same constraints but they are not denied contact with their children because of it!
It might be advisable to have a solicitor send them a letter to remind them that there is an order in place for contact and if they do not abide by it you will take it back to court for enforcement.
This can be done with or without legal representation. With enforcement applications mediation is not compulsory, but this might help to resolve this situation and is worth considering.
To apply to enforce an order you would need to submit a C79 form to the court, and you would submit the application to a court nearest to where they live.
Some solicitors offer a free initial consultation and this might be helpful to get more advice on how to move this forward.
Thank you Nannyjane for your thoughts. I have asked for contact and the grandparent will let me know hopefully this week, hopefully good sense would prevail.
Well that's good news π
It's possible that the grandparents are fearful that you will try and take the child from them, or that the child will want to live with you as they get older. I think that if you are happy for the child to remain living with them, as long as you have good contact, then you could try reassuring them...it wouldn't hurt to tell them you appreciate their care of the child and what a good job they are doing. This may be enough to allay their fears and improve your relationship with them, which will have a positive effect for your child.
It's so much better for the child if everyone involved in their care can get on and work together in the child's best interests.
Good luck, I really hope you can work it out, but if you have further difficulties you know where we are!
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