Key Takeaways
- Child arrangement solicitors do far more than represent parents in court. Much of their work happens before any application is made.
- Their services include advice on your position, negotiating with the other parent, recording agreements, court applications and enforcing or changing existing orders.
- The court fee to apply for a child arrangements order is £270.
- A Bill before Parliament would remove the legal presumption that a parent’s involvement benefits the child, but it isn’t law yet.
If you’ve separated from your children’s other parent, you’ve probably lost sleep over the details. Who does the school run? Where will they spend Christmas? What happens if your ex decides to move? Most parents want these things settled without a fight.
That’s often why people hesitate to call a solicitor. There’s a common worry that instructing one means going to war, or that a letter from a law firm will make a tense situation worse. In practice, most of what a child arrangement solicitor does is much quieter than that, and a lot of it is about keeping families out of court.
This guide explains the full range of services a child arrangement solicitor provides, when each one helps and what it costs. If you’d like to talk through your own situation, Osbourne Pinner offers a free 30-minute consultation with our child arrangement order solicitors.
Will involving a solicitor make things worse?
It shouldn’t. A good family solicitor’s aim is to find arrangements that work for your children, not to score points against your ex. The law puts the child’s welfare first, and experienced solicitors know that aggressive tactics usually backfire, both in negotiations and in front of a judge.
Letters are written to be measured and constructive. Quite often, simply having someone set out your proposals calmly and clearly takes the heat out of a situation that had been going round in circles.
Advice on where you stand
The first service is clear advice. Most parents don’t know what rights they have, or assume the law favours one parent over the other. It doesn’t. The court’s starting point is the child’s welfare, judged against the factors in section 1 of the Children Act 1989. This is often called the welfare checklist. It includes the child’s wishes and feelings, plus their needs and the effect of any change on them.
A solicitor can also explain parental responsibility, which is the legal right to be involved in big decisions such as schooling and medical treatment. Mothers have it automatically. Fathers usually have it if they were married to the mother or are named on a birth certificate registered in England and Wales from 1st December 2003. There are other ways to get it, and a solicitor can tell you whether you need to.
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Helping you reach and record an agreement
Most parents sort out arrangements without a court order, and a solicitor can help that happen. That might mean writing to the other parent with proposals, negotiating through their solicitor or advising you on whether an offer is reasonable before you accept it.
Once you agree, it helps to write it down. A parenting plan sets out things like:
- Weekday and weekend routines
- School holidays
- Handovers
- How you’ll communicate
Our guide to co-parenting agreements explains how these work. Plans often touch on day-to-day costs too, and our free Child Maintenance Calculator can help you sense-check any figures you’ve discussed.
A written plan isn’t legally binding on its own though. If you want your agreement to be enforceable, a solicitor can ask the court to turn it into a child arrangements order by consent.
Applying to court when you can’t agree
When agreement isn’t possible, a solicitor can prepare and manage a court application. Before applying, most parents have to attend a Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting. That said, there are exemptions, including evidence of domestic abuse. The application itself is made on form C100, and the court fee is £270.
The main orders a solicitor can apply for are:
- A child arrangements order: Sets out who a child lives with and when they spend time with the other parent.
- A specific issue order: Resolves a single disputed decision, such as which school a child attends.
- A prohibited steps order: Stops a parent from doing something, such as taking a child abroad without agreement.
Once an application is made, the solicitor prepares your statements and evidence. They deal with Cafcass, the service that advises the court on children’s welfare, and represent you at hearings. Our guide to specific issue orders explains how one of these applications runs in practice.
Help with specific decisions and changes
Not every problem is about the overall arrangements. Solicitors are often asked to help with a single issue, for example:
- Taking a child on holiday abroad when the other parent won’t agree.
- Moving to another part of the country, or overseas, with a child.
- Changing a child’s surname or school.
- Helping grandparents or other relatives who want to keep a relationship with a child.
Each of these has its own rules. Moving a child abroad without the other parent’s consent or a court order, for instance, can amount to child abduction, so advice before acting matters.
Urgent action to protect a child
Some situations can’t wait for the normal timetable. If you have good reason to believe a child is about to be taken abroad without consent, or you’re worried about their safety, a solicitor can apply to the court urgently. In the most pressing cases, orders can be made very quickly.
Where there’s domestic abuse, a solicitor can also advise on protective orders for you and your children, and make sure the court knows about any risks when it decides arrangements.
Enforcing or changing an existing order
Orders don’t always go to plan. If the other parent repeatedly breaks a child arrangements order, a solicitor can apply to the court to enforce it. The court has a range of options, and it will look at why the order is being broken before deciding what to do.
Circumstances also change as children grow. A new job, a house move or a child’s own wishes can mean the old arrangements no longer work. A solicitor can help you agree a variation or, if needed, apply to change the order.
How might the law on child arrangements change?
Since 2014, the courts have had to presume that a parent’s involvement in a child’s life furthers the child’s welfare, unless they’re shown otherwise. The government’s Courts and Tribunals Bill, introduced in February 2026, would remove that presumption. So, courts would decide each case on its own facts without that starting assumption. The change is aimed mainly at cases involving domestic abuse.
The Bill is still going through Parliament, so the current law continues to apply for now. A solicitor can explain how any change might affect your case, especially if you’re about to apply to court.
What does a child arrangement solicitor cost?
It depends on the service:
- One-off advice or a review of a proposed agreement is relatively contained
- Negotiating an agreement costs more
- Full court proceedings cost the most, because they involve statements, evidence and hearings
Lots of parents choose targeted help at the key moments rather than full representation throughout. Whatever you need, you should ask for a clear estimate before work begins. GOV.UK also has practical guidance on making arrangements for your children after a separation if you’d like to read more first.
Talk to a child arrangement solicitor
Leaving child arrangements unresolved can mean months of uncertainty for you and your children, and informal agreements can fall apart just when you need them most. Early advice can help you settle things calmly and put arrangements on a firmer footing.
At Osbourne Pinner, our child arrangement order solicitors help parents at every stage, from first advice and agreed parenting plans to court applications and enforcement. We’ll keep the focus on your children, explain your options in plain English and give you a clear view of costs before you commit to anything.
Please note that this article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. We always recommend speaking to a qualified solicitor for advice tailored to your specific circumstances.
We offer a free 30-minute consultation to discuss your situation, Monday to Friday. You can speak with us via video call or visit our offices in Piccadilly Circus, Canary Wharf, Wimbledon, Harrow or Manchester. To arrange your consultation, call 0203 983 5080, email [email protected] or complete the form below. We do not offer Legal Aid.
