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If a couple that are filing for a divorce have children that are under 16, children that are under 18 that are in full-time education or children that meet these descriptions have lived with them as part of their family during their marriage (step-children, for example) then they will need to complete and submit a Statement of Arrangements for Children form along with a Divorce Petition when beginning proceedings.

The purpose of this form is straightforward: it is used by the judge that reviews the divorce application in order to ensure that appropriate and adequate arrangements are in place for any children that may be involved.

The need to ensure that the needs of any children that are involved in any proceeding that goes through the family court was enshrined in law when the Family Law Act was passed in the seventies and remains to this day.

In order to complete the form, a person will need to state their children’s names, their current address and who lives at that property with the child along with their relationship to them. The name of the school that the child attends, whether or not the parties have agreed maintenance payments and details concerning any health or educational needs that the child has will need to be outlined, also.

Do not worry, the court will not demand that you make changes to your arrangements (it is very common for people to assume that the amount of maintenance that they pay/receive will be questioned, for example) and it is extremely unlikely that any of the arrangements that you outline will result in the courts refusing to grant your divorce unless the Respondent indicates that they disagree with them or that the information is untrue when they return their documents to the court. To put it another way, honest really is the best policy in this instance.

Also, if there have been prior court proceedings that concerned any of the children that are mentioned in the form in any way, then you should include as much information as possible. This should include the court that heard the matter, what the hearing related to, when the matter was heard, the case number and the outcome.

Ultimately, as what you place within this form will only be harmful if you are dishonest, then you should be as truthful as possible. Do not worry about anything that you state in this form becoming public knowledge either. Like all forms filed with the court, it will remain confidential.