Court enforcement of child contact orders: evidence review

6. Parenting support

6.1 Across a number of jurisdictions, changes in legislation have empowered the courts to impose parenting support programmes as a response to breached child contact orders.^[25]

6.2 In a number of cases in England, parents are referred by the court to the Separated Parents Information Programme' (SPIP), run by CAFCASS, which is a group work programme, lasting 4 hours and involving parents and children experiencing various different contact arrangements. SPIP's objective is for:

"Parents and family members [to] learn the fundamental principles of how to manage conflict and difficulties between themselves and their ex-partners and how to apply these principles by planning and imagining positive management behaviours. They also become clear on what their children need most from them and are able to move forward with the reduced need for court intervention."^[26]

6.3 There is some evidence to suggest that parenting support programmes may be more effective for non-resident parents, particularly those who have been heavily involved and/or co-habited with their children until the separation.^[27] In Australia, where child contact orders have been breached due to concerns regarding the non-resident parent's capacity to ensure the welfare of the child, parenting programmes have been recommended to improve their parenting skills and develop their support network.^[28] The evidence notes the importance of programme staff being adequately skilled and resourced to receive court referrals, and that judges should be knowledgeable in recognising who needs such support and in what programme type, in order to direct clients appropriately.^[29]

6.4 In England and Wales, an order to attend a parenting programme may be part of a 'co-parenting' approach, where the court aims to encourage parents to work together and not see contact issues as the fault of one obstructive party. This approach can include orders giving instruction on how parents should behave towards one another, how contact should be conducted, and how handovers should be managed.^[30]