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I'm new this site but have found it very helpful so was wounding if someone could plz give me some advice about my 7year old daughter? I split up with her Mam about 5 year ago and just to be as spiteful as possible she moved her & my daughter 100 mile away to make sure I could not see her as I had no driving license & it would cost me between £60 & £80 to get up to were she was & home again & as Iv been out of work since 2009 money is really tight she thought I would just give up but that wasn't even an option my daughter means the world to me she really is my life & the only thing that keeps me most of the time anyways I begged, borrowed & sold everything I had to get up and see her every weekend & It took me about 2 year to get my driving license but I got it and I started having her weekends & holidays witch was great but every time I had to take her home she sobbed her hart out all the way she hated up the her Mam is an alcoholic, she takes drugs & she has no time for her the for some reason her Mam & her new boyfriend decided to take over the lease on her local pub witch just made it 100 times worse for my daughter, she never went to school , she had no friends, she was in one of the flats above the pub on her own all day & night but I couldn't do a thing because she would have stopped me seeing my daughter altogether like she keeps threatening to do she has 3 other children to someone else , another daughter 17, & 2 boys 12 & 21 , the 12 year old lad has already been taken away from her by his dad because he was worried about him then 9 months ago I don't know the reason but she moved back home (literally at the end of my road) since then my daughter has lived with me constantly she has spent maybe 14 nights at her mams the whole time Iv got her into the school near me & she loves it here her learning has come on leaps & bounds she is really happy she has loads of friends & family & she is just a happy child again but now her Mam has decided she isn't happy in this area & is taking my daughter back to where she was , my daughter is so upset but her mother really doesn't care & she told me there's nothing I can do about it , if anyone can help or give me some advice it would be very very much appreciated
When is she looking to move? If it's imminent, then you would need to apply to the court for a prohibited steps order - others with more legal knowledge will hopefully help with more specific help. There is no guarantee that you will succeed unfortunately, but if she is settled that might help. Unfortunately, because she is only 7, very little weight will be placed on her wishes. There's a lot of issues to address, but it does depend initially on how soon this move might occur.
Hi There,
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Hopefully one of our members with better legal advice will be online soon and be able to give you some advice, but as actd has said if she is trying to move very soon then you would need to apply to the courts to stop this, I would hope that as she has lived with you for a while now that the judge would see that as being settled and allow her to stay with you, but there is as actd says no way of knowing the out come.
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Good luck
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GTTS
Hi there
This must be very distressing for your daughter, but as has already been said, your daughter is still too young for her wishes and feelings to carry a lot of weight, but she would be listened to. All you can do is to present the best case you can, highlight the risks to your daughter, how happy and settled she has been and how well she is doing at school etc. You must point out thata apart from about 14 days your daughter has been living with you under your care and has established a very close bond with her wider family and you have very serious concerns about your daughters safety if she is removed.
A couple of questions if I may....
Have you been through court concerning contact before?
When the father took his son from the mother were Social Services involved, is the child still with his father?
Is there any record with police or Social services concerning her alcohol and drug use?
If the move is going to happen very soon you can apply for an emergency Prohibited Steps Order(PSO) , there is a charge for this of £215, it if you are receiving benefits, or are on a low income, you may be entitled to help with this and can claim an exemption from the court fee when you make the application for the PSO. Unfortunately legal aid for family law cases is no longer available and solicitors can be very expensive, many dads here have decided to represent themselves and we can advise and support you through the process.
You will need form C100 to apply for the PSO and form C1a to tell the court about the risks of harm to your daughter. To claim an exemption from the court fee you will need form EX160.
Once you have filled out the forms you should make three copies of the C100 and C1a (4of each in total), you won't need to make copies of the claim form, although it might be a good idea to keep a copy for your own records.
Take the forms in person to your nearest family court and speak to the court office, make sure you are very clear that your ex is about to remove your daughter and how worried you are for her safety if this happens. Tell them that one child has already been removed by his father because of neglect also and about the mothers alcohol and drug abuse, this should already be mentioned on the C1a form. Hopefully they will get you in front of the judge very quickly and the judge will make an interim order to stop her from leaving.
This will only be the start, the court will then contact the mother to let her know what has happened and another hearing will be scheduled so that she can put her side of things forward. Because you have voiced concerns about drugs and alcohol the court will want welfare reports prepared and your daughter should be given an opportunity to be spoken to about what she would like, this will be done gently due to her young age.
There are no guarantees you will be successful but it's always better to give it your best shot.... some solicitors offer a free half hour and you might find this useful to get more information about the process.
All the best
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