CORONAVIRUS Q&A
Simon Mawdsley, a family lawyer senior associate, and Lorraine Saunders, a family law partner, both at Aaron & Partners answer your questions on parental custody
QI have a co-parenting agreement. My boys are with their mother, who lives with her new partner, who has a co-parenting agreement for his son. My partner has the same agreement with her ex. That’s a lot of children moving between four homes. Can we shuffle them between the houses morally, let alone legally?
AChildren under 18 can move between homes of separate parents. However, we agree with your concern and advise a common-sense approach. Intermingling will increase the risk of infection. Our advice is that the current arrangements be suspended. Mechanisms should be put in place to maintain the relationship between the children and their parents and stepsiblings (Facetime, phone Whatsapp, Zoom, Skype).
QIf a child falls into the extremely vulnerable group, can the parent in whose home they are residing reasonably insist that the child stay in their home for the full 12 weeks with no physical contact with the other parent?
AYes. Even if one parent thinks contact is safe, it might be entirely reasonable for the other to be genuinely worried. Where you cannot agree to vary arrangements, one parent can exercise parental responsibility on their own. If your actions are questioned by the other parent in the Family Court, it is likely to look at whether you acted reasonably on official advice.
QMy ex-husband and I share custody of our children. Because he lives in a bedsit, the children stay at home and he comes to the house and I move out and stay at my new partner’s house for 3-4 days. Can we still do this?
AThis is a grey area. Your movement would be classed as non-essential travel. If you are satisfied your ex-husband has been social distancing he could visit your home to spend time with the children during the day, while you isolate in another room.
QMy daughter works in a supermarket. What is the advice for single parents who are key workers?
AIf their father can assist with childcare then the children can spend time with him, enabling your daughter to work. Parents should not rely upon those in the stringent social distancing category for childcare. This includes grandparents. The children would be entitled to the nursery/school provision for key workers.