Dear PB2000,
Welcome to the Parents Forum.
I am glad to hear that that things are much better for you.
You want to know about how you might increase contact with your children, who are living with special guardians. You also want advice about how your parental responsibility for your children is affected by the special guardianship orders.
Contact
First, I suggest you plan ahead. Think how you would like contact to develop. So can contact:
• Progress into the community, to be supervised (away from the contact centre)? Who could supervised this?
• After a few months, could you have contact unsupervised?
• What about other forms of contact? Cards and presents, for example?
For more advice about contact you could speak to the
National Association of child contact centres or the
Coram child law advice line.
Second, write the special guardian with your suggestions. Outline how your life has changed. You could offer how grateful you are to the special guardian for looking after your children? Ask whether they agree to contact moving forward. Make suggestions.
Third, if nothing is agreed, then the next step is a
mediation (MIAM) appointment .
The National Family Service can help. They will advise you about cost, legal aid (which may be available) and the process.
Fourth, if an agreement about contact cannot be reached at the mediation appointment, then the mediator will sign a court form allowing you to go to the family court and ask for a child arrangements order (for contact).
For advice about the forms needed and the process of going to court, you could look at
Advice Now guides or contact the advice line at Coram Children’s Legal Centre who also both have guidance about private family law applications.
Parental responsibility
Have a look at our
advice sheet for parents about special guardianship orders. Pages 5 and 6 detail the effect of a special guardianship order on a birth parents legal parental responsibility.
So if you want copies of school reports, then your parental responsibility should allow you to get these copies. However, for the purposes of working well with the special guardian, I suggest you let her/him know that you will be asking for the reports.
I hope it is clear but if you have any questions, please post back.
Best wishes,
Suzie