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Our advice service

Are you a parent, kinship carer relative or friend of a child who is involved with, or who needs the help of, children’s services in England? We can help you understand processes and options when social workers or courts are making decisions about your child’s welfare.

Our advice service is free, independent and confidential.

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By phone or email

To speak to an adviser, please call our free and confidential advice line 0808 801 0366 (Monday to Friday 9.30am to 3pm, excluding Bank Holidays). Or you can ask us a question via email using our advice enquiry form.

Discuss on our forums

Our online advice forums are an anonymous space where parents and kinship carers (also known as family and friends carers) can get legal and practical advice, build a support network and learn from other people’s experiences.

Advice on our website

Our get help and advice section has template letters, advice sheets and resources about legal and social care processes. On Monday and Thursday afternoons, you can use our webchat service to chat online to an adviser.

 

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Child arrangements order

What is a child arrangements order?

A child arrangements order is a court order made by the Family Court. It says:

  • Who a child is to live with and where (‘lives with’ child arrangements order)
  • Who a child should be in touch with or spend time with and in what way.

Child arrangements orders were introduced in April 2014. They replace residence orders and contact orders.

A child arrangements order can say a child is to live with more than one person. For example, when two people are raising the child at separate addresses for different parts of the week.

Most often this type of order is used to set out the arrangements for a child to live with a parent. Or to state when and how they should spend time with a parent.

But a child arrangements order can be used to say a child should live with another family member or friend. Where the order is made in this way, it is a form of kinship care.

Child arrangements orders and parental responsibility

A child arrangements order gives parental responsibility to the person it says the child will live with (if they do not already have it).

This means that person can make most day-to-day decisions about the child’s upbringing – such as about going on school trips or medical treatment. There are some limits though. They may not change the child’s surname or take the child out of the country for more than one month unless others with parental responsibility also consent.

Parents do not lose parental responsibility when a child arrangements order says their child should live with someone else.

For more information for kinship carers about child arrangements orders, please see our:

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