The benefits of mediation include improving communication between parents, avoiding expensive and stressful court litigation and achieving solutions that work for you and your family.
Our mediators have worked as family lawyers for over 20 years and bring this expertise to the mediation process. We will ensure that you have an understanding of the law and options available to you and facilitate discussions about what may work best for each of you in your particular circumstances.
As accredited mediators we can help you to discuss and resolve issues relating to the arrangements for your children including where they live and how much time they spend with each parent, moving home, changes to school or a review of arrangements already in place.
The mediator’s job is to act as an impartial third party and manage the process of the mediation, helping you to exchange information, ideas and feelings constructively. The mediator has no power to impose a decision or settlement on you, the responsibility for all decisions remains with you both, since you know better than anyone else what is right for your family. The mediator will not advise you about the best option for you or your children, nor can the mediator protect your individual interest. However, the mediator can give you legal information where this is needed to ensure that you reach informed decisions.
Very importantly the mediator will help you to keep the needs of any children at the forefront of any negotiations and you can always discuss how you can talk to children appropriately about the arrangements you reach. During the mediation process it is sensible to seek legal advice on the options we discuss. As mediators we are not able to give legal advice because we must remain impartial throughout the process.
If we are looking at financial issues surrounding arrangements for your children, there is an obligation on you both to give full financial disclosure. This ensures that any agreements reached are on the basis that both of you have knowledge of each other’s financial position.
If arrangements are agreed we can prepare a document called a "Memorandum of Understanding” which can, subject to legal advice, be drafted into a parenting agreement or court order, to ensure that the agreement becomes one that you can both rely upon.
Child Inclusive Mediation
Our mediators are qualified to meet with your children during the mediation process if you both agree and the children are old enough to participate and want to. This enables us to bring the views of the children into the discussions we have and ensure their voice is heard as part of your decision-making process.
During any mediation that involves the arrangements for children, mediators must consider how the voice of the child will be heard. In some situations, this can be sought directly from the child or children who can meet with our mediators. Children benefit from and value their views and opinions being heard. Although their views will be discussed during the mediation process (if the child agrees to this) our mediators will help the child understand that the child is not responsible for any decisions and that the parents remain the decision makers in the mediation process.
Often children express the view that they would like to talk to someone neutral when their parents are separating and like to be invited to talk to the mediator, without feeling they must make a decision about what should happen next. Child Inclusive Mediators are specially trained to enable them to directly consult with children during the mediation process, where appropriate. This is normally most appropriate for children over the age of 10. Both parents, and the child must agree before any meeting can take place. The meeting can be with a child alone, or with their siblings depending on the child’s wishes.
Our accredited mediators can arrange a confidential meeting with children who will then have a chance to put their point of view about their family situation and changes. Children’s views will be respected, with no pressure being put on the children and the meeting will be friendly and informal. Neither parent is present during the time the mediator spends with the children. The children decide with the mediator what they want fed back to parents.
The Child Inclusive Mediation process remains confidential and voluntary. The mediator will not prepare a report and what is discussed will not be able to be used outside of the mediation process. Child Inclusive Mediation can help give children a voice so that they feel listened to. What a child says can assist parents in their discussions and decisions for the future.
Mediation offers a place for you to talk calmly and confidentially about the issues, helping you work together to achieve practical solutions for you and your family.
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