The end of Term 4 is approaching which means the Christmas school holidays are coming.
This time can be stressful and anxiety-inducing for separated parents. We recommend that you and the other parent should discuss and agree upon an arrangement for the Christmas summer school holidays including the Christmas celebrations. You should have this conversation in September or October so that you have time to negotiate and make holiday plans accordingly.
If you are living in close proximity to the other parent, you may decide on a week-about or fortnight-about arrangement with special arrangements to split the Christmas celebrations. This split Christmas arrangement may look like the following:
- With the Father from 12pm Christmas Eve to 12pm Christmas Day;
- With the Mother from 12pm Christmas Day to 12pm Boxing Day.
If you and the other parent do not live in close proximity to the other or your own extended family Christmas celebrations takes place at a venue that is a considerable distance away, you may decide not to split the Christmas arrangement but instead alternate the Christmas arrangements. The arrangement will avoid the children travelling long distances during the Christmas celebrations which is not a fun experience for the children or the parents who are stuck in Christmas traffic with the children. You may wish to consider the following alternating Christmas celebrations arrangement:
- With the Father from 12pm Christmas Eve to 12pm Boxing Day in odd-numbered years;
- With the Mother from 12pm Christmas Eve to 12pm Boxing Day in even-numbered years.
It is common for most workers to take leave during the Christmas period and take holidays interstate or overseas. Therefore you should consider the possibility of interstate or international travel when making plans for the Christmas summer holidays. For instance, you may wish to consider a fortnightly arrangement so that you can take the children away for a 2-week holiday interstate or overseas (instead of a week-about arrangement where your interstate/overseas holiday will be limited to 1 week only).
The parents should also consider whether the arrangement for the Christmas summer holidays and Christmas celebrations is appropriate for the children considering their age. If the child is a young infant who is still being breastfed, then extended time away from the non-primary carer is not appropriate. However, if the child is of schooling age and has been spending significant and substantial time (including overnight time) during the school term with the non-primary carer, then it would be appropriate for the child to spend block time (1 or 2 weeks) with the non-primary carer during the Christmas summer holidays. The appropriateness of an arrangement is on a case by case basis, depending on the child, health issues, practicalities of the arrangements, travel time, whether there are issues of risk to the child, etc.
Generally, the best arrangement for Christmas is for the children to spend time with both of their parents in a safe and relaxing way. You should not involve the children in the parties' dispute if the other parent does not agree to your proposed Christmas plans. It is detrimental to the children's well being who suffer from the feeling of being put in the middle of the parties' dispute.
If you and the other parent cannot reach an agreement about the Christmas summer holidays, you should consider using a mediator to assist in the negotiations or simply contact a lawyer to commence those negotiations on your behalf. However, you should remember that the courts will require parents to attend mediation and to make a genuine effort to resolve matters before commencing court proceedings.
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*** Disclaimer:
Information on this website or post does not constitute legal advice and that electronic dialogue with readers does not constitute any form of client engagement unless specifically agreed.
The information is provided on a general basis only. We strongly recommend that you seek your own independent advice from a lawyer about your situation.
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