News | Grandparents' role in the family to be recognised
It has long been recognised that grandparents play a vital role in the upbringing of children, with studies showing they provide more than 40 per cent of childcare for parents who are at work or studying and more 70 per cent of childcare at other times: a contribution estimated to be worth £50billion a year! However, unlike step-parents, grandparents currently have no automatic right to access to their grandchildren. Rather a perverse situation.
Things may be about to change, and grandparents may be given the recognition and rights they deserve, following recommendations within The Family Justice Review, recently commissioned by the Government and led by former civil servant, David Norgrove.
Research shows that children who see their grandparents regularly are more stable, but it is suggested that around 2.5 million children don’t see their grandparents for more than a month at a time, and around half of grandparents lose touch with their grandchildren following separation or divorce – most frequently it is the father’s parents who lose touch.
Whilst it appears that there will be no legal rights given to grandparents, the recommendation within The Family Justice Review is that the importance of grandparents should be “reinforced” and that “parenting agreements” should be drawn up to help families to focus on the children and secure contact with grandparents. Such agreements could then be used as evidence of the parents’ intention, should they go back on the agreement, and the grandparents’ then need to take court action in order to try to see their grandchildren.
Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg has indicated that the Government is likely to accept the recommendations. Last year he said that it was “crazy” that millions of grandparents lost contact after separation and divorce, confirming that they play a vital role when relationships break down.
The proposals within the review will now go to consultation, with a Whitehall source saying that they put children “at the heart of the system” and make sure that parents going through a divorce “think about how they can be best cared for both now and in the future.”
If you have any questions about contact with grandchildren, please contact our family law team on 0114 321 1888, or email divorce-enquiries@graysons.co.uk
