What rights do grandparents have in Scotland to see their grandchildren?

A new report has been published by the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (SPICe) relating to contact between grandparents and their grandchildren.

The report is a helpful guide and summary regarding the current law in this area in Scotland and also highlights sources of support for grandparents in such situations where they are struggling to see their grandchildren.  

There are a variety of reasons as to why grandparents can experience difficulties in having contact with their grandchildren.  As practitioners, a particularly common scenario we see is where the parents of the child separate acrimoniously and therefore the child ends up living with one parent. This can often lead to grandparents on the other side of the family finding it difficult to have direct contact with their grandchild.  Whilst this is, of course, incredibly upsetting for grandparents to experience, the law sets out that grandparents do not have any automatic rights regarding their grandchildren.  

However, the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 can be used by grandparents who find themselves in such a difficult situation to try and seek contact with their grandchild.  The 1995 Act includes reference to who has contact with a child on a day-to-day basis.   In the event that an agreement can't be reached directly with a child's parents regarding contact between the grandparent and the child, then it may be that a mediator or a solicitor should be involved in order to try and seek agreement using the 1995 Act.   

If such an agreement simply cannot be reached, then the 1995 Act can be used by grandparents (or indeed anyone else with an interest in the child) to raise proceedings at the sheriff court for what is known as a “Contact Order”. If granted, this Order will be legally binding in relation to what contact grandparents can have with their grandchild, and when.  A variety of factors would be taken into account when the court considers matters, including, the welfare of the child, and the child's views.  

The SPICe Report helpfully sets out for grandparents what the 1995 Act says and how it is relevant to them, as well as relevant provisions of the Children (Scotland) Act 2020 - albeit this is not yet in force in respect of the provisions affecting grandparents.  The report is also incredibly useful in signposting support, advice and information for anyone who finds themselves in a difficult situation whereby they are not seeing their grandchildren. 

Should you find yourself in a situation where you are not seeing your grandchildren and wish to obtain legal advice regarding this, then please get in touch with a member of our family law team who would be more than happy to meet with you to help you find a way through this difficult time