Children have a strong desire to please both their parents. So, when parents are separating or divorcing, children may conceal their feelings to avoid hurting their parents or making the situation worse. This can create feelings of stress and anxiety in them. The ability to express feelings can relieve this. Child Inclusive Mediation helps children voice their views independently to someone who is committed to ensuring that their perspective is brought into parents’ discussions about arrangements for them.Parents are often in such a chaotic and emotional state themselves that they can find it difficult and painful to truly focus on how their children are coping and what they need. The Child Inclusive Mediation Service gives parents the opportunity to make decisions from an informed position.Although children involved in mediation generally don’t want to make decisions about their care, they do want to be given the opportunity to talk about their experiences and have their voices heard. “A number of studies… have identified that children and young people feel insufficiently consulted by parents and by practitioners about the contact arrangements that directly involve them.” (Making Contact: Liz Trinder, Mary Beek & Jo Connolly, 2002.)