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Overview
Parenting arrangements are about agreeing on how to care for your child.
If you’re experiencing family violence, you may need other support
You and your child's safety come first when trying to sort out parenting disagreements outside the Family Court. If you or your child are experiencing family violence, some of these services may not be right for you.
Use our tool to find a provider for Parenting Through Separation course or for Family Dispute Resolution mediation.
Parents, guardians, and whānau should try to work together
Your child's best interests should always be the most important thing when working out parenting arrangements. Children need their parents, whānau and friends in their lives. Whānau can also play a part in the child's day-to-day care.
It’s important to maintain these relationships for a child’s overall wellbeing. Parents, guardians, and whānau should try work together to agree on how everyone can be involved.
Services and resources are available to help you and others involved to have these conversations. You can choose to write down your arrangements, so everyone understands what they’ve agreed to. If everyone agrees on how to care for your child, you don’t need to do anything else.
Sometimes, you may need to apply to the court to turn your parenting arrangements into a court order. This could be because you think you may need the court to enforce the ‘Parenting Order’ later.
Resources in other languages and alternate formats
We have resources available in different languages and alternate formats. Select the language or alternate format to get the resources relevant to this page.
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Resources in other languages
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Resources in alternate formats
Feeling overwhelmed?
Going through a change in your whānau situation can be hard. It's normal to feel overwhelmed. There are services available to help and support you through this time.
Visit our help page