While the UK may currently be on lockdown, government officials have said that children with separated parents can still visit them both during this time.
Children that usually have regular contact with both parents will likely want to continue seeing their parent outside the home as normal.
Yet there are a number of factors that might make this difficult during the coronavirus pandemic.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed and unsure about the risks of your child visiting their other parent, then hopefully this will help.
Parenting expert Emma Bradley, from Childcare.co.uk has put together her top tips for co-parenting during the isolation period.
Her first tip is for parents with very young children to make the tough decisions for the little ones.
She explained: “Parents of younger children need to make the decision on access between them. Don’t ask the children to make a decision as that is just too big a responsibility for them.
“As adults we are struggling to understand the logistics which makes it impossible for primary school aged children to understand.
“Teenagers may be better placed to have an opinion and share a preference for how they would like to see contact maintained, but use with caution.”
(Image: Getty Images)
Emma also suggests parents maintain as much contact as possible with their kids through technology.
“Set regular times to Facetime or phone the other parent,” she says.
“Children may not want to stay on the call for long as it is not the same as physically being together, but the other parent could read a story or a chapter of a book or something similar to maintain the relationship.”
She continues on to advise that if contact with the other parent usually takes place in a supervised setting, this should “be paused” while most places are closed as “the child’s safety is paramount”.
And when it comes to your own relationship with your ex, now is the time to put problems aside and communicate as best you can.
“Relations between separated couples may be strained, but now more than ever it is important that they attempt to communicate in a positive way for the benefit of their shared child(ren) who will be feeling sad and confused at not seeing both parents,” said Emma.
“Talk to your ex calmly and understand that everyone will be feeling emotional at this time.”
Finally, she adds: “Remember that this is not forever, this is for a period of three weeks initially and it is a public health measure designed to save lives.”
