Divorce effects on children come under scrutiny
More than a third of children lose touch with their fathers after their parents split up because of a failure by parents to separate amicably, a study has found.
Family lawyers at Mishcon de Reya conducted the study to mark the 20th anniversary of the Children Act, which aimed to improve the welfare of children caught in the middle of family break-up. It surveyed 2,000 people who had been involved in a divorce as a child and 2,000 parents who had separated or divorced over the past 20 years.
Half the parents said they had put their children through court processes over access issues and living arrangements, with 20 per cent saying they had tried to make their partner's experience of the separation 'as unpleasant as possible' regardless of the effect this had on their children.
Sandra Davis, head of family law at Mishcon de Reya, said, 'The millions of pounds spent on Legal Aid, running the courts and CAFCASS could be better spent on educating parents about their children's needs and gaining an understanding of how to resolve long-term disputes and reduce hostility.'
