News and views

Triumph for distanced sports day

Children at Jubilee Day Nursery in Padworth, Berkshire, have celebrated their Sports Day in true spirit despite the ongoing uncertainty surrounding COVID-19. The pre-school children (and their parents!) had plenty of fun taking part in a variety of traditional races, all whilst in their bubble groups. The event was held outside in the nursery’s 60 acres of private land to ensure physical distancing amongst parents, children and the staff.

Emma Hirst, deputy manager at Jubilee Day Nursery said: “It was a lovely opportunity to spend the time together in our bubble group, giving the children and parents the most wonderful sports day to remember. We were delighted we could still go ahead with the event under the circumstances and would like to say a huge well done to all of the children who took part.” Established since 1977, Jubilee Day Nursery provides exceptional childcare for children from three months to five years old. The nursery remained open throughout lockdown period, providing childcare for children of key workers, and reopened to all children on 1st June.

No-fault divorce: the law and the reality

The long-awaited ‘no-fault’ divorce is on its way, thanks to the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020. This new Act of Parliament marks a major change for divorcing couples and their families. At a stroke, it sweeps away the five grounds for divorce, three of which require allocating blame. It replaces them with a single statement that “The marriage has broken down irretrievably.”

As Justice Secretary & Lord Chancellor Rt Hon Robert Buckland QC MP said:

“By sparing individuals the need to play the blame game, we are stripping out the needless antagonism this creates so families can better move on with their lives.”

In my view, no-fault divorce is long overdue. It ends the destructive and derisive blame game that permanently damages already strained relationships and pushes families further apart. No-fault divorce will allow couples to separate whilst retaining a working relationship for

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future co-parenting, child arrangements, financial settlements and family life in general. No-fault divorce is not a ‘quickie’ divorce. Under the new legislation, divorce will actually take longer. However, the no-fault divorce process will be fairer and more suitable to today’s society. A non-antagonistic approach reduces the emotional distress of divorce on children too, so often stuck in the middle between warring parents. Society needs a better way to treat divorcing couples and their families. The Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act forms the cornerstone of much-needed reform in divorce and a potentially less stressful experience for parents, children - and extended family too.

Anne Leiper is a Director at LGFL Ltd, a boutique family law firm in Reading. Anne is offering readers of Families Thames Valley an initial online 1-hour consultation with 30 minutes included free, to discuss divorce, separation or any family law issues. https://bit.ly/1-hr-consult

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