CHILDREN MATTERS
Child Arrangements Orders
About Child Arrangements Orders
A child arrangements order is the family court's decision about who a child lives with, who they spend time with and when. It is made under section 8 of the Children Act 1989, and the court's paramount consideration is the child's welfare rather than what either parent wants. We advise separated parents and other family members on agreeing arrangements where that is possible, and on applying to the court where it is not.
Who this is for
- Separated parents who cannot agree where their child lives or how time is shared
- A parent whose time with their child has been stopped or cut down
- Grandparents, step-parents and other relatives who may need the court's permission to apply
- Parents who have agreed arrangements and want them recorded in a court order
How RakLAW helps
- Say honestly what an application is likely to achieve before you commit to one
- Negotiate a parenting plan or a consent order so that court is the last resort
- Check whether you need a MIAM or whether an exemption applies, and record it properly
- Prepare the C100 application, and form C1A where harm is alleged or answered
- Deal with the Cafcass safeguarding letter and any section 7 report and respond to its recommendations
- Represent you at the first hearing, any fact-finding hearing and the final hearing
What a Child Arrangements Order Decides
Section 8 of the Children Act 1989 defines a child arrangements order as an order regulating with whom a child is to live, spend time or otherwise have contact, and when. One order can cover living arrangements, weekends, holidays and indirect contact such as calls. It replaced residence and contact orders on 22 April 2014.
Child arrangements are sometimes called child custody or child contact, as GOV.UK notes, but the family court in England and Wales makes a child arrangements order and neither parent is awarded the child.
The court does not have to make an order at all. Section 1(5) says it must not unless doing so would be better for the child than making none. An agreement can be recorded as a consent order, and where one decision is in dispute rather than the pattern of care, a specific issue order or a prohibited steps order may be the right application.
Who Can Apply and the Welfare Test
Parents, guardians and special guardians, a step-parent with parental responsibility under section 4A, and anyone named in an order as a person the child lives with, may apply without permission. Section 10(5) adds a party to a marriage or civil partnership, current or former, where the child is a child of the family, anyone the child has lived with for at least three years, and anyone with the required consents.
A relative the child has lived with for at least a year immediately before the application may apply for an order about who the child lives with and when, and anyone else needs the court's leave first, which is why grandparents seeking contact usually take two steps.
What decides the case is the child's welfare: section 1(1) makes it the court's paramount consideration and section 1(2) treats delay as likely to prejudice it. Where the order is opposed, the court works through the welfare checklist in section 1(3):
- the child's wishes and feelings, in the light of their age and understanding
- their physical, emotional and educational needs
- the likely effect of any change in circumstances
- their age, sex, background and any relevant characteristic
- any harm suffered or risked
- how capable each parent, and anyone else in question, is of meeting their needs
- the range of powers open to the court
Section 1(2A) also requires the court to presume, unless the contrary is shown, that involving each parent furthers the child's welfare. Involvement can be direct or indirect and does not mean any particular division of time. The presumption does not apply to a parent where there is some evidence before the court to suggest that involvement in any form would put the child at risk of harm.
Evidence and Common Problems
The court works from written evidence and from the safeguarding information Cafcass provides. Useful evidence is specific: the arrangements that have actually worked, messages showing what was offered and refused, school and medical letters, and your home and working pattern.
Common problems:
- allegations of harm raised late, after the case has been timetabled
- messages sent in anger, which read differently months later in the court bundle
- stopping contact to force a hearing, which the court weighs under the welfare checklist
- asking the court to decide everything at once, so nothing is resolved early
Where domestic abuse is alleged, Practice Direction 12J applies. The court must identify the factual and welfare issues at the earliest opportunity, usually at the first hearing, and should decide whether a fact-finding hearing is needed and not make a contact order that would expose the child to an unmanageable risk of harm. If you are in immediate danger call 999, and the National Domestic Abuse Helpline is 0808 2000 247.
How the Court Process Works
- Before applying you must attend a mediation information and assessment meeting with an authorised family mediator, unless an exemption in rule 3.8 of the Family Procedure Rules applies, such as domestic abuse evidence or genuine urgency. Our MIAM advice page lists them.
- We file form C100, with form C1A where harm to the child or a party is alleged or answered. A court fee is payable and help with fees may be available: the fee list for family court cases is linked from GOV.UK court and tribunal fees.
- Cafcass makes safeguarding checks with the police and the local authority, speaks to each party by telephone and sends the court a safeguarding letter with its analysis. Where an officer suspects the child is at risk of harm, section 16A requires a risk assessment.
- At the first hearing dispute resolution appointment the judge, with a Cafcass officer present, identifies the issues, tests what can be agreed and gives directions; section 11(3) allows an interim order at any point.
- If welfare questions remain, the court may order a section 7 report from a family court adviser.
- The case returns for a dispute resolution appointment and, if it is still not agreed, goes to a final hearing where the judge decides.
What the Order Says and How Long It Lasts
Section 11(7) lets the order contain directions about how it is carried into effect, impose conditions on a named person or a parent, and run for a specified period, which is how handovers, holidays and staged contact are written in.
Section 11A lets the court direct a party to take part in a programme, class or counselling session where contact needs support. An activity direction cannot require anyone to undergo medical or psychiatric examination, assessment or treatment, or to take part in mediation.
Every order carries a warning notice under section 11I about the consequences of not complying, and the court has powers where it is broken: see enforcing a child arrangements order. It can be changed by consent or on an application to vary the order, and a change you agree between yourselves cannot be enforced unless it is made legally binding.
Where the court names a father or second female parent as a person the child is to live with, section 12 requires it to give them parental responsibility if they do not have it already.
A section 8 order is not made to end after the child reaches 16 unless the circumstances are exceptional, although sections 9(6A) and (6B) take an order that regulates only who the child lives with and when out of that limit; section 91(11) ends it at 18. Where both parents have parental responsibility, the provisions about living with and spending time with each parent cease to have effect if the parents live together again for more than six continuous months.
When Legal Advice Is Especially Important
Advice matters most where:
- domestic abuse is alleged and the arrangements have to be safe: see child arrangements where there has been domestic abuse
- your time with your child has been stopped
- you are not a parent and need the court's leave to apply
- a move is proposed, whether relocating with a child within the UK or abroad, or a holiday needs consent for taking a child abroad
- social services are involved or a child protection plan is in place
Money is dealt with separately, on our child maintenance advice page, and a child's immigration position belongs with family immigration.
How RakLAW Solicitors Can Help
We act for parents, grandparents, step-parents and other relatives from our office at 42 Shad Thames in Southwark, a short walk from Tower Bridge. The first step is a free 15-minute consultation, in which we say what the court will focus on and whether negotiation or an out of court option would be quicker.
If you apply, we prepare the C100, deal with the safeguarding letter and any section 7 report, and represent you at each hearing. If you agree, we draft the consent order. Our family law fees page explains how we charge, and we do not undertake legal aid work.
Our other children matters pages cover the related applications, and our article on child arrangement orders explained is a short read. To get started, book an appointment or call 0203 345 2000. RakLAW Solicitors is regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, SRA number 8007405.
Frequently asked questions
Is a child arrangements order the same as custody?
It covers the same ground. GOV.UK notes that child arrangements are sometimes called child custody or child contact, but in England and Wales the family court makes a child arrangements order under section 8 of the Children Act 1989, setting out who the child lives with, who they spend time with and when. Neither parent is awarded the child.
Do I have to try mediation before applying to court?
You must attend a mediation information and assessment meeting with an authorised family mediator before you apply, unless an exemption applies. Attending the meeting does not commit you to mediation. Rule 3.8 of the Family Procedure Rules lists the exemptions, including evidence of domestic abuse, a child subject to section 47 enquiries or a child protection plan, genuine urgency and applications made without notice. Under rule 3.10, if the court finds an exemption was not validly claimed it can direct you to attend a MIAM and adjourn.
Who can apply for a child arrangements order?
Parents, guardians and special guardians, a step-parent with parental responsibility under section 4A and a person already named in an order as someone the child lives with can apply without permission. So can a party to a marriage or civil partnership where the child is a child of the family, someone the child has lived with for at least three years (the three years need not be continuous, but must not have begun more than five years before, or ended more than three months before, the application), and anyone with the consent of all those holding parental responsibility. Everyone else needs the court's leave first.
Does the court start from an equal split of the child's time?
No. The court presumes under section 1(2A) that involving each parent furthers the child's welfare unless the contrary is shown, but section 1(2B) says involvement does not mean any particular division of time. What the arrangements look like comes from the welfare checklist applied to your child, their age, their school and the practical realities of both homes.
What does an application cost?
There is a court fee for a C100 application, and help with fees may be available depending on your income, savings and benefits. The current amounts and the eligibility rules are published on GOV.UK. Our family law fees page explains how our own charges work.
Will my child be asked what they want?
The child's ascertainable wishes and feelings are the first item on the welfare checklist, considered in the light of their age and understanding. Where a section 7 report is ordered, a family court adviser usually sees the child alone somewhere neutral such as school, and does not ask them to choose between their parents. Cafcass says the court pays particular attention to what a child wants but may not always do what they ask.
Can grandparents apply for contact with their grandchild?
Usually in two steps. A grandparent is not among the people entitled to apply, so they ask the court for leave first, unless the child has lived with them long enough to bring them within section 10. Our grandparents and contact page explains the leave stage and what the court looks at under section 10(9).
How long does a child arrangements order last?
A section 8 order will not be made to end after the child reaches 16 unless the circumstances are exceptional. An order that regulates only who the child lives with and when is taken out of that limit by section 9(6A) and (6B), and section 91(11) brings it to an end at 18.
What happens if the other parent ignores the order?
Every order carries a warning notice under section 11I about the consequences of not complying, and the court can act on a breach, including requiring unpaid work or compensating financial loss. The court can also decide that a different arrangement is better for the child instead. Our page on enforcing a child arrangements order deals with that application.
Can the order be changed later?
Yes. If you both agree, the change can be recorded in a consent order, and GOV.UK warns that an informal change cannot be enforced later unless you make it legally binding. If you do not agree, either of you can apply to vary the order, and the court applies the welfare checklist again.
I am worried about my child's safety during contact. What then?
Tell us and tell the court early. Practice Direction 12J requires the court to identify the issues at the earliest opportunity, says it should consider whether a fact-finding hearing is needed, and says it should not make a contact order that would expose the child to an unmanageable risk of harm. The court should order contact only where the physical and emotional safety of the child and of the parent they live with can, as far as possible, be secured.
Do I need a solicitor to apply?
You can make the application yourself, and many people do. A solicitor helps most in deciding what to ask the court for, keeping the case to the questions that matter, putting your evidence in a form the court can use and dealing with the safeguarding letter and any section 7 report. We will tell you at the first meeting if we think you do not need us.
Speak to a RakLAW Solicitor
Book a confidential consultation with our family law team. We will talk through your situation, explain your options, and set out the practical next steps.
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