News

Monday 20 October

Children Caught In Divorce

Agony aunts want better support for children

Agony aunts in the UK are to ask the Government to make priority children whose parents have separated or divorced.

A new survey by Kids in the Middle has found 70 percent of children said their experience of separation had been ‘bad’ or ‘very bad’. The national online survey gathered the views of more 1,500 children and families. More than eight in ten said they weren’t encouraged to talk about their parents’ separation. And nearly three quarters felt they needed someone to talk to about their feelings. Kids in the Middle was launched earlier this year by Relate, Families Need fathers, One Parent Families/Gingerbread and the Fatherhood Institute.

Claire Tyler, chief executive of Relate, said: ‘It is clear that more help is needed for separating mothers and fathers to help them steer clear of continuing conflict which can be so damaging for their children. And help is also needed for children themselves. By backing our recommendations Government can make sure that kids are top of the agenda.’

Agony aunts want help to be provided at an earlier stage to cut down the number of cases which end up in court. They have also called for counselling services to be provided for children in schools and in the community, and ten pilot schemes to develop affordable ways of reaching families and focusing on the youngster involved in separation.

Related articles:

• Family Finance: - balancing your family's budget
• Our Parent-to-parent Talk Forums