Guest blog post from Tracy Stewart, a current student on our Diploma in Relationship Counselling. Tracy will be blogging for us once every few months, giving us a valuable insight in to the demanding yet rewarding work that goes in to becoming a Relationship Counsellor. Feeling trapped in an unsatisfying existence? Wasting precious time doing things…

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Guest blog post from Catherine Gordon, a current student on our Diploma in Relationship Counselling. Catherine will be blogging for us once every few months, giving us a valuable insight in to the demanding yet rewarding work that goes in to becoming a Relationship Counsellor. Moving from counselling skills to diploma work is a big…

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Sydney Bridge

This is special guest blog post from Lauren Ferguson, 4th Year LLB Law (Honours) Student at Glasgow Caledonian University. Lauren’s post examines international perspectives in family mediation as a form of alternative dispute resolution (ADR). Lauren’s views do not necessarily reflect those of Relationships Scotland. Mediation has become a widely recognised method of alternative dispute resolution. Putting an…

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Projects supporting Scottish families through the toughest of times, including conflict and relationship breakdown, are to expand their services thanks to over £1.5 million from the Big Lottery Fund. Today’s total of £1,574,143 goes to five organisations supporting child contact centres in different parts of the country. • Relationships Scotland Orkney • Relationships Scotland Borders…

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Robin Waterston

Robin Waterston is Relationships Scotland’s longest serving mediator – working with families in Tayside and Fife for 25 years. He’s kindly taken time out of his day to speak to us about some of the challenges and joys of being a family mediator. Robin was brought up in St. Andrews. He gained a PhD in…

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Mum and daughter playing

Guest post from Rosanne Cubitt, Joint Head of Professional Practice at Relationships Scotland. Mediation is, essentially, a voluntary process in which parties are helped to communicate, negotiate and make their own decisions. There is no compulsion to agree and no decision imposed. So what is ‘mandatory mediation’? The term is normally used as a short…

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Guest blog post from Rosanne Cubitt, Joint Head of Professional Practice at Relationships Scotland. Child Maintenance is changing – charges are being introduced in 2014 for the use of the statutory service (previously the CSA, Child Support Agency). There are routes to avoid the charges. The preferred option is to set up a private arrangement,…

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Man in family mediation

Guest post from Rosanne Cubitt, Joint Head of Professional Practice, covering all the key questions you need to ask before choosing a family mediator to work with.  1. What training has the mediator undergone and have they been assessed as competent? It is important to find out whether the mediator has been trained to provide…

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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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