Grandparents’ Rights

If family difficulties have affected contact with your grandchildren, our Family Law team can explain your legal options and help you find a way forward.

Grandparents’ Rights Solicitors

The relationship between grandparents and their grandchildren can be a special one that offers love, stability and support. Unfortunately, following a family breakdown or dispute, grandparents can sometimes find themselves unexpectedly cut off from a child’s life.

While grandparents do not have an automatic legal right to see their grandchildren, there are legal options available to help maintain these valuable family relationships. At Bridge McFarland, our Family Law team can explain your rights, guide you through the process and help you determine the best way forward.

Do Grandparents Have Legal Rights?

In England and Wales, grandparents do not have an automatic legal right to spend time with their grandchildren. However, the courts recognise the important role grandparents often play in a child’s life and will always consider what is in the child’s best interests.

Where it is possible, families are encouraged to reach an agreement without court proceedings. Methods of dispute resolution such as mediation can often help resolve disagreements and preserve family relationships.

What Happens if An Agreement Cannot Be Reached?

If informal discussions and mediation are unsuccessful, grandparents may be able to apply to the court for permission to make an application for a Child Arrangements Order.

Permission is not granted automatically, but the court will consider factors such as:

The nature of the relationship between the grandparent and the child
Why the application is being made
Whether the application could disrupt the child’s life
Whether continuing the relationship would be in the child’s best interests

If permission is granted, the court can then consider whether making a Child Arrangements Order is appropriate.

How Does the Court Make its Decision?

As with all child law matters, the child’s welfare is the court’s overriding priority.

The court will consider a range of factors, including the child’s needs, the strength of the existing relationship with their grandparents, any potential risks and whether maintaining contact would benefit the child’s emotional wellbeing and development.

Every family’s circumstances are different, and the outcome will depend on the individual facts of the case.

Speak to the Experts at Bridge McFarland

Disputes involving grandchildren can be particularly upsetting for everyone involved. Our experienced Family Law solicitors provide sensitive, practical advice aimed at resolving matters as amicably as possible while keeping the focus firmly on the child’s welfare.

We can advise grandparents on their legal options, assist with mediation where appropriate and represent you throughout court proceedings if an application becomes necessary.

If you would like advice about grandparents’ rights, Child Arrangements Orders or any other child law matter, contact our Family Law team today by calling 0800 987 8800 or emailing enquiries@bmcf.co.uk.

In some cases involving local authority proceedings or other qualifying circumstances, legal aid may be available. Our solicitors can advise whether funding may be available in your case.

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Read our Child Law FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions about Child Law

How easy this is to do and how to do it will depend on who has parental responsibility and whether all parties agree to the change. If all parties with parental responsibility have provided written agreement to the change this can be done easily via a Change of Name Deed. If one parent refuses, a Specific Issue Order will need to be obtained from the Court.

If your ex has parental responsibility, you cannot generally stop them from seeing your child without a Court Order in place. An exception to this would be if there are serious concerns about the child’s welfare or safety in which case, you should seek legal advice. If they don’t have parental responsibility, they do not have an automatic right to have contact with your child and would need to get a Court Order to do so if you don’t agree.

A Prohibited Steps Order is a court order which prevents a parent or guardian from taking specific actions regarding a child without the court’s permission. Examples include taking a child abroad and removing a child from school.

A Child Arrangements Order sets out where a child will live, who they will spend time with, and how contact will take place after parents separate or divorce. You might need a Child Arrangements Order if there is a disagreement between parents about where a child will live or when, where and how often contact can take place.

A Child Protection Plan is a plan put in place by the Local Authority to set out the action which is needed to reduce your child/children suffering harm. Under this plan a social worker is allocated to you and your family and regular meetings will take place (at least every 4 weeks) to review the plan and the progress which has been made.

This is a package of support which is put in place to provide extra support for your child/children and your family to address any areas of need and risk assessed by a Social Worker.

This is for families who might need a little extra support and is a group of people (including professionals, e.g; health visitors / social workers / teachers etc) who will work together to support you and your child/children to prevent any concerns increasing.