- Separation Support
- Counselling
- Mental Health Support
- Relationships and Sexuality Education
- Relationships and Parenting Courses
- First Nations Services
From $25 per hour per parent*
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From $25 per hour per parent*
*Concession pricing available. Fees may apply for additional services.
Supervised visits at our Children's Contact Service provide a safe space for children to engage with parents and family members so they can build positive relationships with all their loved ones. Suitable for children, parents and family members who require support and/or supervision to see one another whether due to separation, conflict or safety concerns. The service provides you with a perfect space to help nurture the positive bonds with your children.
Dependent on your family’s needs, you can arrange visits at one of our centres, within the community or online. With the assistance of our contact staff, we can help you to facilitate interactions and set goals for the future that focus on your children’s needs during separation, as well as improve communication, reduce conflict and improve co-parenting relationships.
Developed as a short to medium term service, our aim is to support you to move towards managing your shared parenting arrangements independently once you have reached a cooperative and safe dynamic in your co-parenting, where this is safe and appropriate. We recognise that every family is different and will consult with you to establish contact arrangements that suit your family’s needs.
Who is This For?
The service is suitable for children, parents and family members who require support and/or supervision to see one another whether due to separation, conflict or safety concerns.
The service is suitable for:
- children aged up to 18 years
- separated or carers
- estranged family members including grandparents, siblings, stepfamily, aunts and uncles
Our Children's Contact Service is open to all families whether court ordered or self-referred
Benefits of the Children's Contact Service
Benefits of accessing this service include:
- a safe, secure and nurturing environment for your children to build strong and supportive relationships with both parents
- support to identify and meet your children’s needs during separation as they learn the skills to communicate their needs and emotions
- a neutral space where staff listen to both parents and assist in facilitating shared parenting arrangements that work for the long-term, helping you build the foundations of a strong co-parenting relationship
- confidence to move to the next stage of co-parenting, feeling empowered to navigate joint decisions respectfully
- A child focused approach that minimises all family member’s exposure to conflict, making visits a positive experience. We can help you navigate and help your child feel secure and cared for as they transition between caregivers. Click here for more information on our Supervised Changeover Support service.
What to Expect
The Children's Contact Service works in partnership with families to provide child-focused support. To ensure we understand how to best support you and your family there will be an intake appointment to discuss your situation and the needs of your children.
Once both parents have completed an intake separately and it is agreed that our service is the best place for you, we will move forward with an orientation process so you and your children can get familiar with the centre.
We understand this can be a new and challenging space to navigate. Please raise any questions or concerns you have with your contact staff member during the intake process and they will make sure you have what you need to feel confident about moving forward.
Individualised Support
To ensure the best outcomes for everyone we offer flexibility around our services to best meet individual needs including:
- arranging an interpreter service for your appointment with Auslan or language (supported by TIS) interpreter options available
- aligning you with team members who are culturally safe and sensitive to your needs such as First Nations identified or informed or a member or ally of the LGBTQ+ community.
- adapting service delivery where possible to best align to what feels safe and supportive for you
When you enquire or book our Children's Contact Service with our friendly Client Experience Team please feel safe to discuss your unique needs so we can help ensure the best experience for you.
How to Begin Your First Visit with Us
Information for Parents and Carers
Information to help you prepare yourself and your children for beginning visits at our Children's Contact Service
Information for Children
Help your child get to know our Children's Contact Service and feel comfortable before their first visit.
Commonly Asked Questions
The Children's Contact Services is a safe and neutral space for all separated families. Parents and carers may use the service voluntarily, or where there are court orders or parenting plans in place. The service supports families with children where one parent/carer or family member cannot see the child freely or easily due to separation, conflict, safety concerns or other circumstances. To use the service both parents/carers or family members will meet separately with the Centre Coordinator for an intake and an assessment. The intake allows us to understand your situation and determine if this service is the best approach for you and your family. If for whatever reason the service is not suitable, Interrelate can provide you with a letter outlining the reason and support you to explore other options that may be more suitable.
Wait times for the Children's Contact Service are dependent on the mutual availability of the service and both parents and the time taken to complete the intake and assessment process with each parent/carer. If you have already made an intake appointment our client experience team would likely have advised of any wait times. If you are yet to make an appointment, we recommend you call or message us and we can connect you with your local centre as availability will differ in each of our locations.
The Children's Contact Service has strict requirements relating to the confidentiality of records. Throughout service, notes are kept about each family's interactions with the service including observations made by staff during changeovers or supervised visits. These notes can only be released under limited circumstances. The service is obliged to release records where there is a legal obligation to provide the information through a court ordered subpoena.
You can read more about subpoenas and the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia here.
If your family is involved in family law proceedings whilst using the service, the court may appoint an Independent Children's Lawyer to independently represent the best interests of the child. If there is an ICL appointed in your family's matter, the Children's Contact Service Coordinator may communicate with the ICL about how visits or changeovers are going. We only provide relevant and factual information based on our observation reports and case notes from the visits or change-overs.
You can read more information about the ICL's role in family law proceedings here.
The court order will usually specify that a child may have contact with their parent or significant adult who they are not currently living with using supervised service. In some cases, the court orders will request you contact Interrelate within a certain amount of time of receiving the orders. When you contact us, and have provided a copy of the court orders, an intake and assessment will be scheduled with a Children’s Contact staff member. Both parents will need to have an intake separately. Once both parents/ family members have had their intake, and your situation has been assessed and deemed appropriate, next steps will be taken to arrange supervised visits.
Supervised visits, or contact visits, are when a child spends time with a parent, carer, or family member who they do not live with under the supervision of trained children’s Contact Workers. Children's Contact Workers are present to ensure a conflict free and safe handover of the child from one parent to the other. They monitor and offer support during the visit to facilitate a positive and safe environment for the child and the parent, enabling them to develop their relationship. As part of the supervision, the Contact Workers will observe and take notes of what occured during the session. All Contact staff remain neutral with the goal to support families, wherever possible towards self managing their own arrangements, and supporting the best interests of the child.
Supervised visits can go anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours and are determined by the needs of the child, any court orders or parenting plans and the centre’s availability. Visits are usually scheduled for a set day and time for families whether weekly, fortnightly or monthly. Service staff will work with you to develop a schedule of visits that works for the child, both parents and the availability of the service. The service aims to meet family's needs in terms of visit times and provides flexible options to work with family's schedules.
The cost of supervised visits are based on an hourly rate. The cost is $50 per hour, Monday - Saturday. Typically the cost is split evenly between both parents/carers unless specified in any court orders or parenting plans. Interrelate receives some funding to provide this service so our fees are at a reduced rate. If you have any concerns about the cost of the service please discuss this with the service Coordinator.
We want you and your family to have the best chance to strengthen your relationships and spend time together. How often visits take place will depend on your unique situation and needs for the service, as well as our availability to host the visit. The service aims to work with you to develop a schedule that meets the needs of both parents, the child, any court orders or parenting plans and the capacity of the service to meet the frequency requested. The Children's Contact Service is independent of the Family Law Court and is not obligated to fulfil any court orders, however the service works to accommodate each family's needs.
The Contact Centre rooms are each specifically developed to be welcoming, well-resourced and child-friendly environments. Each have toys and equipment to help facilitate family interactions which can help children build relationships. Some centres have kitchen facilities for the preparation of lunch and dinner. Please check during intake for a full list of amenities available. Parents are encouraged to bring food and activities to cater to their child's age and interests to the visit. Staff will discuss what to bring when they meet with you.
Usually it is the responsibility of the visiting parent to provide what is needed for the visit with their child such as food, drink, nappies, sunblock, etc. Each centre is equipped with toys and resources to cater to children's ages and interests, however we encourage the visiting parent to bring activities to share with their child. The service aims to help your child feel as comfortable as possible during the visits and staff will ensure both parents are clear on what they need to provide. If you have any questions or concerns about this please discuss with the Service Coordinator.
Your child is our main priority. Our Contact Workers talk with children and carefully observe and monitor their emotional and physical behaviour during contact visits. In any situation where a child becomes upset, staff are available to provide support and listen to both parent's strategies on how to best settle them. The service's role is to support the best interests of children, in a situation where a child cannot be calmed, the visit will need to finish early. Staff can provide additional information on how you can support your child to adjust to visits.
Yes, we often encourage the attendance of extra visitors where there is a meaningful relationship with the child such as siblings and extended family, especially those who would normally have contact with the child if supervision was not required.
The attendance of extra visitors will need to be pre-arranged with the Service Coordinator prior to attending the visit to enable adult visitors to complete the required checks.
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