In reaching their agreement parents should make the best interests of the child the paramount consideration. Lawyers, counsellors, and mediators can all assist parents to work out the detail of a parenting plan. If a plan has been prepared with the assistance of an approved counsellor or with independent legal advice from solicitors, it can be registered in the Family Court or Local Court and will have the effect of a court order. Once made, a parenting plan may not be varied except if it is revoked and a new plan is made. Residence A residence order is a parenting order which determines the person with whom a child is to live.
Contact normally takes place on alternate weekends and for up to half of school holidays.
For younger children, contact normally occurs more frequently but often for shorter periods. Where parents live far apart or in different States, the contact normally takes place during part or the whole of school holidays. Telephone contact is also a common way of staying in touch. A court will deny contact to a parent only in exceptional circumstances and on solid grounds. Grandparents and other significant people are also entitled to have contact with children and may apply to the court.