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Grandparents have an important role to play in<br />
the upbringing of their grandchildren<br />
Unfortunately due to family arguments and parents who may want to cut off contact<br />
with former partners and family members grandchildren can often lose contact with their<br />
grandparents.<br />
It is important for children to know their grandparents to learn about themselves and their<br />
family background. Suddenly losing contact with grandparents can cause distress to the<br />
children involved. In such circumstances all efforts should be made to negotiate with the<br />
parents with the welfare of the child being the paramount consideration. As a last resort, if<br />
negotiations fail, grandparents should be aware that they can in some circumstances make<br />
an application to Court.<br />
In the majority of cases grandparents will need to obtain permission from the Court before<br />
they can make an application to have contact with their grandchildren. As the law stands at<br />
the moment there is no presumption in favour of grandparents obtaining permission. When<br />
deciding whether or not to grant permission the following factors will be considered:<br />
1. The nature of the application. The Court will need to consider whether the motivation<br />
behind the application is in the child’s best interest.<br />
2. The grandparent’s connection with the child.<br />
3. Any risk that there might be of the application disrupting a child’s life to such an extent<br />
that the child would be harmed. With this in mind the Court need to consider the level of<br />
disharmony between the grandparents and the child’s parents.<br />
If permission is granted then whether or not the application to have contact with the<br />
child is successful will depend on the following:<br />
A. The ascertainable wishes and feelings of the child concerned<br />
(considered in the light of his/her age and understanding).<br />
B. The child’s physical, emotional and educational needs.<br />
C. The likely effect on the child of any change in their circumstances.<br />
D. The child’s age, sex and background and other relevant characteristics.<br />
E. Any harm which the child has suffered or is at risk of suffering.<br />
F. How capable the grandparents in question are of meeting the child’s needs.<br />
The Family Team at Mayo Wynne Baxter have successfully represented grandparents and have<br />
advocated the need for children to have contact with their grandparents.<br />
We always aim to resolve matters amicably.<br />
If you would like some further advice on this issue please contact<br />
the Family Team on 01273 223220.
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