Is it possible to prevent someone seeing a child?

It is often said it takes a village to raise a child. However, life can be complex.

It is often considered ideal for a child to have both of their parents in their life. Sometimes relationships break down and you may no longer feel like you trust the other people in your child’s life.

When deciding on arrangements for your child, it is important to consider whether those arrangements are in the child’s best interests.

Both parents should have a relationship with their children unless there is a genuine and justifiable reason for them not to. Most parents have parental responsibility and therefore any decisions made for a child should be considered with the other parent with parental responsibility if possible.

The Government has recently recommended that court will no longer start with the presumption that contact with both parents is in a child’s best interests. It aims to prioritise child safety and welfare over automatic contact. For this reform to come into law, new legislation is required.

What is a normal child arrangements routine?

What is suitable for one child may not be suitable for another child.

There are lots of different child arrangement patterns that can occur. Some children spend time equally with both parents, some children live with one parent and spend time with the non-resident parent. In some less common situations, a child may not see their non-resident parent at all, even if that parent wants to see them.

How do I know whether I should stop someone seeing a child?

A child should have contact with both parents if it is safe to do so. You need to consider carefully why you say that a child should not see the other parent and think hard about the reasons why you are considering stopping contact.

If you stop contact and a court later believes you should not have done this, then it may be detrimental for your case long term.

Be careful not to put your own hurt above the needs of your child. An example of this may be where one parent has had an affair but is otherwise a good parent to the child.

Where a parent is not paying child support for the child, this would not be a good reason to stop contact. You can attempt to remedy this by seeking child maintenance instead.

Reasons to stop child contact

These may include, but are not limited to: 

• Domestic abuse
• Drug use
• Alcohol abuse
• Criminal activity
• Behaviours that put the child at risk
• Emotional or psychological harm

Reasons to deny overnight visitation

In addition to the factors listed above, it may be possible to refuse or limit overnight stays if the accommodation provided for the child is inadequate to meet their needs or otherwise places the child at risk.

Can you ensure your child still has a safe relationship with their parent?

Where a child has had a relationship with the other parent, and contact is stopped all of a sudden, this can in some certain circumstances lead to confusion and upset to the child.

Each circumstance is different, but consider carefully whether contact could continue, subject to certain safeguarding being put in place. Things that you could consider are:

• Mediation or solicitors to form a plan
• Obtaining an injunction
• A prohibited steps order
• Contact centres
• Supervised/supported contact
• Telephone/FaceTime contact
• Emails/letters/cards/presents
• The family or parents engaging in services such as counselling, rehabilitation, medical support, etc.

What to do if you want to stop contact or if the other parent is stopping contact

If either parent stops contact, or if you are the one whose contact has been stopped, you should seek independent legal advice immediately. Solicitors will consider and tailor an advice plan to your circumstances and consider all the options with you depending on the facts of your case. This includes a wide range of action, from negotiation to mediation or even court proceedings.

Read our latest guide on changing a child arrangement order for more information.

What age can a child decide to not see a parent?

There is no set age at which a child is legally entitled to refuse to see a parent, but their views are more likely to be taken into account from around the age of 12. It depends on the individual child — their age, maturity, ability to understand the impact of their views and the reasons for holding those views. A child’s wishes and feelings must always be a factor, whatever their age, but they are not necessarily determinative.

Most child arrangements orders end when a child reaches 16, and so at 16, a child can usually decide which parent they want to live and have contact with. There can be exceptions and child arrangement orders can remain in place until they reach adulthood.

Can you legally stop someone from seeing a child?

The answer is yes, you can stop someone from seeing a child. However, you should only do so if there is a risk to the child. You can apply to court to prevent such contact. The court will consider all the circumstances to decide whether it is in best interests of the child not to see someone, to include:

• The child’s wishes and feelings in light of their age and understanding of the situation
• The child’s physical, emotional and educational needs
• The likely effect on the child of any change in their circumstances
• The child’s age, sex, background and any other relevant characteristic
• Any harm that the child has suffered or is at risk of suffering
• How capable each parent is of meeting the child’s needs
• The powers available to the court in dealing with the situation

You should weigh up whether this is in your child’s best interests to stop contact all together, or whether you can mitigate any risk by supervised contact.