Separation
Top tips for communicating – with your child’s other parent, your children and others
Communicating effectively has a massive impact on relationships – whether that’s with your life partner, your children, their other parent, your friends or at work. You need to find a way to get on, get your ideas across and overcome differences of opinion if you are going to succeed and move forward. Here are…
Read MoreFind out how mediation has helped some families; it might help in your situation too.
We asked our family mediators to tell us about how mediation has helped some of the families they have been meeting with. Here are some of the stories they told us. Hopefully, they shed some light on how mediation might help you, your family or friends. Details have been changed to protect confidentiality. …
Read MoreSeparating parents urged to avoid courtroom conflict as Family Mediation Week kicks off in Scotland
Parents living in Scotland who have decided to separate or divorce in 2023 are being urged to find out how to avoid courtroom confrontation to settle parenting arrangements, with the launch of Family Mediation Week, 16 – 20 January. January usually sees a dramatic rise in the number of parents deciding to live apart…
Read MoreLittle Voice
Article 12 of the UNCRC states that children’s voices must be sought, listened to, and taken into account in matters affecting them. Rosanne Cubitt explains how this right is being respected for children in cases of parental separation. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child states that children who are capable of…
Read MoreGiving Children and Young People a Voice when Parents Separate – How Mediation can Help
Since the 1990s a noticeable shift within Scottish culture has occurred – it is now expected that children’s opinions will be sought and considered on a wide range of issues. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child states that children who are capable of forming a view have a right to express those…
Read MoreParenting Apart Project – Year 1 Summary
Parenting Apart information sessions have been offered across Scotland, from 11 Member Services, since funding was awarded by the Scottish Government in April 2015. In that time over 300 parents have participated in group or individual sessions and found out how to make splitting up less stressful for children. The feedback from parents has been…
Read MoreTell us your relationship story
In August 2014 we will be launching a major piece of research exploring the state of the UK’s relationships. The report gives us a snapshot of all kinds of relationships, from couples to colleagues. To help us to bring the research to life and show what it means to different people across Scotland we would…
Read MoreAre young children ‘damaged’ by overnights with their separated dad?
A brief guest post from Rosanne Cubitt, Head of Professional Practice at Relationships Scotland, offering her thoughts on the controversy surrounding Penelope Leach’s new book – ‘Family Breakdown’. A heated debate has been sparked by Penelope Leach’s new book, ‘Family Breakdown’. Let’s be very clear that at Relationships Scotland we disagree with a presumption that overnights with the other…
Read More‘Conscious Uncoupling’ – A better way to separate?
Guest blog post from Anne Chilton, Joint Head of Professional Practice at Relationships Scotland, on Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin’s ‘conscious uncoupling’. Conscious uncoupling might sound catchy and a bit new wave, but is it? It’s the other end of all that lovey dovey stuff we do at the start of a relationship. Only at…
Read MoreShould mediation be mandatory for separating couples?
This article originally featured in The Scotsman. Family mediation helps resolve issues between separating couples more quickly and more cost effectively than those cases that go through the courts. Family mediators work directly with separating partners to improve communication, reduce conflict and help the couple themselves agree on practical, workable arrangements for the future care…
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