Christmas arrangements for children when parents separate can be difficult. How can Christmas be shared? What options can work for children?
Myths in family law can impact the chance of reaching a swift resolution. We hope to dispel some of these in this blog.
How are BIFF statements different from others and when are they useful?
It's really tough when your parents decide to get a divorce. Read about what is involved from another teenagers perspective and how to handle the situation.
Find out more about Gill Wright, consultant at Family Mediation and Mentoring
Meet the team at Family Mediation and Mentoring- first up....Claire Colbert, accredited mediator and co-founder of FM&M
How can you have a happy marriage? What are the top tips?
If you are divorcing a narcissist how can you deal with NPD in mediation?
If you are divorcing a narcissist and hope to work through the legal issues in mediation, how should you manage their behaviour?
What is shuttle mediation? How is it different from traditional mediation? Does it work?
How can special events be managed for children when parents separate? A guest blog by Marcie Shaoul of the Co-parent Way
What is Parental Responsibility? Who has Parental Responsibility? What decisions need those with Parental Responsibility to agree?
How can mediation use Early Neutral Evalution? How can it work with Arbitration?
Are the details of your divorce private? What are the new transparency changes in family law?
We are delighted to celebrate Claire Colbert's success at The British Family Law Awards 2024, as she receives the ‘Family Mediator of the Year’ award.
How can separated parents ease anxiety for children at Christmas? What are the triggers?
What happens to inherited assets when a married couple divorce? Can they be protected? Will they be shared?
The gifts separated parents buy for children can cause disputes. How can this be avoided? What tips are there to help?
Is it worth having a pre-marital agreement and what impact will it have?
What legal protection is there for unmarried couples who separate?
What is a Memorandum of Understanding? What is an MOU? What impact does it have and how can it be used after family mediation?
Halloween is often a big event for children. When parent's separate, how can parents both be part of events like this?
How do costs of children's hobbies and clubs get taken into account when parents divorce? What needs to be considered?
How can we resolve disputes about which school might be best for a child?
How can you manage ending a relationship with a narcissist?
Spousal maintenance variation applications can feel complicated. What needs to be considered?
Podcast with Dr Supriya Mckenna and Karin Walker discussing Narcissism and the role of Hybrid Mediation
What can parents do to make divorce easier for children to cope with?
Pets are an important part of our lives. What happens to pets when a couple separates or gets divorced?
Proposed CGT changes will impact separated couples. What could these changes mean?
When parents are no longer living together, the financial costs of their children are something that needs to be agreed. How is this calculated?
Mediation can be used to sort out the financial issues when a couple divorce or separate.
Lack of trust is a common concern in mediation
Christmas is meant to be a joyful time of year, but for many separated families the festive holidays can be very difficult. There can be several issues that need to be resolved to try and ensure the period is as enjoyable as possible for the adults, and most importantly the children.
Divorce is stressful for kids, all kids. It’s a crisis in a family and it’s not at all surprising that it causes deep emotional reactions including anxiety.
When solutions are found in mediation, what are the next steps?
Is it a child's choice? Who decides?
Parenting plans can be a useful document for parents to draft to cover a range of issues and arrangements for children
Hybrid mediation is a way to stay out of court and try to reach an amicable agreement, but your lawyer is involved too. This is useful if you feel nervous about attending mediation on your own.
What happens when parents can't agree a primary school, secondary school or change of school for their children?
Is it a child's choice? Who decides?
What is mediator and what does a mediator do? How is this different to a lawyer?
If your friend is divorcing, what could you say that would be helpful?
This time of year many of us are counting down to a well deserved summer holiday. Often these have been booked for many months, but sometimes are lastminute decisions. What should be an exciting trip to look forward to can become a very stressful issue if you are a separated parent.
The Family Justice Young People’s Board has collated top tips from children of separated parents
What is it like for a child when you have two homes after your parents split up? Jacqueline Wilson has covered this in her book “The Suitcase Kid”
Often the emotional attachment to our pets can be strong and an emotional part of the decisions made in divorce and separation.
You may have heard of parents who have a “birdnesting” arrangements when they separate. But what is this and how does it work?
If you are looking for a book to help a child think about how having two homes this is a great place to start- Two Homes by Claire Masurel.
The £500 mediation voucher scheme introduced in March 2020 has been extended to March 2023
A child's book exploring a boy's attempts to find a pot of glue to stick his parent's marriage back together
“(Almost) Anything But Family Court offers parents a detailed roadmap towards a positive goal. Oozing with common-sense and emotional insight, the available options and various routes are explained in non-legal language” Sir Andrew McFarlane, President of the Family Law Division.
How will a house be shared or dealt with if you separate or divorce?
Claire Colbert and Rachael Oakes talk about the importance of Early Intervention for separating couples with qualified Psychotherapist and Counsellor Adele Ballantyne
How can we make sure we are doing all we can for our children and do we need to be a perfect parent? Daniel Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson cover these issues in their book- "The Power of Showing Up"
Many children (and adults) suffer from anxiety. How can parents explain it their children and equip them with tools to deal with it?
Claire Colbert and Rachael Oakes talk about the importance of Early Intervention for separating couples with qualified Psychotherapist and Counsellor Adele Ballantyne
When solutions are found in mediation, what are the next steps?
The Parenting Puzzle- tips, ideas and solutions for parenting issues
The newly published "Split Survival kit" offers a guide through the journey of separation and divorce from a child's perspective.
Sara Davison, best known as The Divorce Coach, made a name for herself when she launched the UK’s first ever Breakup Recovery Retreat, now dubbed as ‘Heartbreak Hotel’ which was also commissioned for a TV series with Sara starring as the expert. Sara has written a blog for us with tips on how to spot the signs of emotional abuse.
Edited by Rebecca Giraud and Bob Greig. Separating can be a minefield. When you don’t know where to start, this book will point you in the right direction.
A book to assist children deal with the emotions when parents separate and divorce
Why do teenagers behave like they do? A must read for parents of tweens and teens!
Which professionals can be involved and help in Family Mediation?
Dr Isabelle Hung is a Clinical Psychologist who specialises in working with adults who are struggling with mental health, and/or feel stuck in their lives. She is the co-founder of www.divorceclub.com and also works for UCLH and the Schoen clinic, as well as writing for a number of publications and websites and has prepared a guest blog for us on how to deal with difficult emotions during a divorce.
What is Child Inclusive Mediation and how does it work?
Rachael Oakes and Claire Colbert met with Zahra Pabini of Irwin Mitchell to discuss how lawyers can support mediation
A video blog with some tips and suggestions of what to do when a relationship ends
"Jack" is a book written for children to help them deal with the issues that surround divorce and separation. One of the authors, Helen Bishop, explains more about the book in her guest blog below.
Payments made from income after divorce are called spousal maintenace. What is this?
How will a house be shared or dealt with if you separate or divorce?
How can you explain mediation to children?
A guide prepared by the Parenting After Parting Resolution Committee
Video of how to put children first when you are divorcing.
What is Hybrid Mediation? Find out in Claire Colbert's video blog
‘Divorcing a Narcissist: the Lure, the Loss and the Law’ is a new book, which is a result of a collaboration between narcissism expert Dr Supriya McKenna and top UK family lawyer Karin Walker - and it could be exactly what you need. One of the authors, Dr McKenna, explains below.
Mediating by video technology has advantages- read our top tips!
Claire Colbert and Rachael Oakes of Family Mediation and Mentoring LLP
Christmas can be stressful for separated families. Mediation can help.
Adverse Childhood Experiences impact a child's physical and emotional health. This book explores the link and issues.
This issue is often a worry for parents who are separating. I outline some suggestions and tips to help.
Parenting plans can be a useful document for parents to draft to cover a range of issues and arrangements for children
How can mediation work if the thought of speaking with your ex is too difficult?
Who needs to provide consent?
