Reasonable access?

[MrsSnail]

Can anyone point me in the direction of any guidelines on what access is considered reasonable for the non resident parent of a small child?

there is not set guidelines, its what you and your ex decide and feel is fair to you both and any children involved, its only where this cannot be done would a court get involved. and to be honest it varries from judge to judge!! my strongest recommendation is to come to an agreement between you on what you feel is in the best interests of all concerned.

Every case is different and the most important thing is the arrangements are practical and the child's attachments with both parents are maintained. If the parent with the minority of care works late in the office most evenings there isn't much point in them insisting to have young children during the week. Likewise there is no point in the other parent demanding to have the children when the children are at nursery or go to after school and the parent with the minority of care is free and willing to care for children.

If the parent with the minority of care has been very involved before separation then it's likely that the children need lots of contact otherwise they could feel abandoned.