Sources

The small numbers in the text point to these sources. Information and links checked November 2026.

1. Office for National Statistics, Domestic abuse prevalence and trends, England and Wales, Crime Survey for England and Wales, year ending March 2025.
2. Children Act 1989, sections 2 to 4; GOV.UK, Parental rights and responsibilities.
3. Serious Crime Act 2015, section 76 (controlling or coercive behaviourControlling or coercive behaviour. A pattern of behaviour used to control, frighten or isolate a partner or family member. It is a criminal offence. in an intimate or family relationship); Domestic Abuse Act 2021, section 1 (definition of domestic abuse, including after separation); Home Office, Domestic Abuse Statutory Guidance.
4. CafcassCafcass. The Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service, which advises the family court on children's welfare in England. Cafcass Cymru does the same in Wales., Top tips for parents who are separated, written by the Family Justice Young People's Board.
5. GOV.UK, Child Maintenance Service, how payments are worked out and Direct PayDirect Pay. A Child Maintenance Service arrangement where it works out the amount and the paying parent pays the receiving parent directly. or Collect and PayCollect and Pay. A Child Maintenance Service arrangement where the service collects child maintenance and passes it to the receiving parent. Collection fees apply..
6. Matrimonial Causes Act 1973; GOV.UK, Apply for a consent order.
7. Family Procedure Rules 2010, Part 3 (Mediation Information and Assessment Meetings); Family Mediation Council; GOV.UK, Family mediation.
8. Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 (no-fault divorce, in force from 6 April 2022).
9. Cafcass, Planning Together parenting plan.
10. Department for Education, Understanding and dealing with issues relating to parental responsibility (updated August 2023).
11. Child Abduction Act 1984, section 1; GOV.UK, Permission to take a child abroad.
12. Children Act 1989, section 1 (the child's welfare as the court's paramount consideration, and the welfare checklistWelfare checklist. The list of factors in section 1(3) of the Children Act 1989 the court considers when deciding what is best for a child.).
13. Cafcass, Coping with your child's reactions.
14. NSPCC, Supporting children through separation and divorce.
15. Cafcass, Communicating with your child's other parent after separation.
16. Welsh Government, Parenting Together, New partners.