It can be very upsetting if a parent is stopped from seeing their children.

If your partner will not let you see your child then the first thing to do is to try and talk to your partner about the issue and come to some sort of arrangement between yourselves. If this is not possible, then you are able to go to court and get something called a contact order.

This is a legally enforceable document that states how often you should have contact with your child.

The starting point for any court is the welfare of the child. This has to be paramount when looking at the logistics of a contact order and the court can take into account such things as the child’s after school activities or how far away each parent lives.

Unless there is a very good reason to the contrary, every child should have contact with both parents.

It is worth noting that although the contact order can be enforced where one parent stops the other from seeing the children, it does not work the other way.

The order cannot force anyone to have the children if they do not want to see them or refuse to spend time with them.

If either parent breaches the terms of the order and stops the other from seeing the children as per the terms of the order then it is very important to get expert legal advice from solicitors such as Austin Kemp as soon as possible.

Sometimes, an application will be made by the primary carer of the children to the Child Support Agency, soon to be replaced by the Child Maintenance Service, although it is worth noting that they are unable to make an assessment if the other parent is living abroad.

Going via these two agencies will mean that you get the most basic level of child support available to you as the primary carer.

If your partner is a high earner (more than £104,000 per year) then the Child Support Agency has a limited role. The court can then order what to do with regards to child maintenance.

If this is the case, it is important to get independent legal advice as soon as possible.

Our specialist solicitors will negotiate the best possible outcome in court and make sure that you receive what you should over and above the minimum level of child support available from your more wealthy partner.

Talking about your children’s future with your spouse when you are going through a divorce can be a highly emotional experience.

If you can, try to sit down together and discuss how each of you envisage what will happen to your children after you separate.

Who will they live with? How often will the other parent see them? Although these are tough conversations, especially at the beginning of the divorce process, you should hopefully come to an agreement that is in the best interests of the children.

If you cannot manage to come to an agreement between yourselves, then you could try mediation (an independent third party aiding discussions) or collaborative law (where you and your spouse meet and discuss the issues with both of your solicitors present).

It may also be worth trying some kind of counselling, either together or separately, to talk through your issues about the children and the relationship breakdown in general.

If you still cannot reach an agreement, specialist solicitors such as Austin Kemp can advise you on how to take your case to court. Court should always be a last resort but it is sometimes necessary if no agreement can be reached.