Child Maintenance Options has been working closely with a variety of parent support organisations including Kate & Emily in order to ensure that we can provide appropriate information and guidance to all mums and dads.
On these pages, Kate & Emily introduce the concept of co-parenting. They explain how parents can work together for their children, even if they have issues between themselves and discuss how absent dads can start to become a part of their children’s lives. They also supply a variety of tools and activities to help both parents develop their co-parenting skills.
Who are Kate & Emily?
When Kate Ford and Emily Abbott became single parents, they spotted a gap in the support that was available to them.
In 2003 they set up an organisation to fill that gap, offering practical and positive support for mothers and fathers who no longer live together. They now run a successful website (www.kateandemily.com), workshop programme and book (Kate & Emily’s Guide to Single Parenting) which provide mechanisms to get adults together, share experiences and advice, and be empowered to move forward positively. All in all this helps to make sure that children stand the best chance possible of growing up happy and balanced with a sense of family and security.
What do Kate & Emily hope to achieve?
Kate & Emily’s overriding aim is to encourage all family members, in any shape or size of family, to put the children’s interests first and try ‘co-parenting’ (making, and keeping up, some kind of co-operative relationship with the other parent for the benefit of the children wherever it’s safe). They hope to help families to create a stable, secure and happy environment that both children and parents will enjoy, by encouraging them to focus everyone on improving the quality of childhood, and minimise the stress in the children’s lives.
They do know that co-parenting is no walk in the park - hurt, anger, and other powerful feelings can often be simmering below the surface of any broken relationship. Co-parenting needs thought, planning, and a realistic understanding that it will probably take a while to get it right, but Kate & Emily have lots of ideas about things that separated parents can try. They provide encouragement and motivation, along with ideas to help the single parent to build up the inner strength they need to keep at this project for the good of everyone, particularly the children.
Who do Kate & Emily support?
Kate & Emily have no prejudice about who left who and who did what to who. They welcome contact from anyone with a single parenting issue and have found that it is whether you’re the resident parent or live-away parent that makes the difference to your experiences of single parenting, rather than whether you’re the mother or father.
They acknowledge that the past needs dealing with (to make things easier going forward) but they gear their support towards looking to the future. They encourage both parties to use the online forum or send them an email if they are looking for help.
Kate & Emily are keen to help all parents in all situations.
What advice can Kate & Emily offer?
We’ve highlighted some of the key areas that Kate & Emily can help with and shared an overview of their advice. They want parents to understand the principle of the advice and to act in the spirit of it. They don’t suggest that everyone can follow it to the letter because everyone’s situation is different, but there should be elements that each person can apply to their own situation.