We’re all going on a summer holiday…..

But have you agreed on the arrangements with your co-parent for the children?

Very few parents/carers are lucky enough to have 12 or more weeks’ holiday a year, and even if they do, they can’t always book to coincide with the school holiday periods all the time. Even fewer parents/carers will have all the holidays they want, plus days they can take at short notice to cover when a child is poorly.

It’s hard enough when there are two parents or carers living at the same address and trying to make their work schedules fit around school holidays.

Now factor in trying to make all these arrangements across two households with parents or carers who are perhaps not always on the same page after their relationship has come to an end. They may not agree about the timings of the holiday for the children, or the destination (often more difficult when it’s overseas), getting the passports organised, who looks after the passports and many more things.

Most parents/carers might want to know:

1. What can you do?
2. Do you need a lawyer?
3. Do you need a court order?

The short answers to the above are:

1. There are lots of possibilities.
2. Not always and
3. Hopefully not!

So, what can you do?

As long as the co-parents (by which I mean people who share parental responsibility for the child)

It’s when they don’t agree or can’t agree that problems can arise.

You (as co-parents) can do any of the following:

• Agree directly
• Seek assistance from a solicitor to help you (ideally someone who specialises in family law and is committed to the principles of Resolution)
• Seek assistance from a family mediator or neutral evaluator or arbitrator or, nothing else will assist,
• Ask the family court to make a decision for your child or children.

Do you need a lawyer?

Not always.

Whilst it’s always a great idea to get some early legal advice so you (both) have an understanding of your options and the legal choices you can make, there are lots of other professionals available to help you navigate these issues such as family mediators, neutral evaluators, arbitrators, which help you avoid a significant amount of the ill feeling, stress, expense and time involved in roping the family court in to take over decision making for you and your family.

At Geldards LLP we understand the value and benefit of good quality legal advice, and our team of experts in family law also includes mediators, arbitrators and neutral evaluators, all there to help you try and resolve things efficiently and effectively.

Do you need a court order?

Not if you agree with each other.

Yes, if you cannot find a mutually acceptable way forward and none of the non-court options to resolve the dispute can assist.

Sometimes, if there are additional factors that might need a court order in place.

If you’re struggling with your summer plans or already planning 2026 school holidays and adventures but worry it might not be possible to sort these out with your co-parent or carer, get in touch to see how we can help you and your family.