Grandparenting Report Launched

In a report launched yesterday at Westminister the Grandparents Association, Family Matters Institute and Families Need Fathers claim grandparents are getting a raw deal under existing family law. The study Beyond the Nuclear: Including the Wider Family, says The Herald, found that 42% of grandparents lost all face-to-face contact with their grandchildren after parents separated.

In Scotland there is no automatic right for grandparents to have contact with their grandchildren but a court application can be made without leave from the court. The Scottish Government has refused to amend legislation to include any legal "presumption" of contact rights for grandparents. Although not legally binding the Grandparents' Charter in 2006 sets out the rights of grandparents.

The campaigning groups are calling for reform to the law in England and Wales so it is no longer necessary for grandparents to apply for leave of the to apply for a contact order.

Bah, humbug, I'm not in favour of grandparents having a "presumption" of contact rights . Contact is for the benefit of children, their time belongs them. Separated families struggle with contact enough as it is without the pressures of further court actions and accommodating schedules for grandparents. Parents need to be able to parent without the intervention of grandparents, who on occasion may actually fuel conflict. Whilst I do appreciate grandparents may add a dimension to a child's life, when contact time for parents is sorted it will naturally follow that children can have a relationship with grandparents.

Full story Source The Herald 19 May 2009