Child Inclusive mediation, also known as child informed mediation, helps parents understand what it’s like to be this child now, in the context of their parent’s separation. Children feel supported and understood without pressure to make decisions, but rather share feelings.
Child Inclusive Mediation
An evidence-based practice pioneered in Australia over several years by Professor Jennifer McIntosh, child inclusive mediation (sometimes referred to as child informed mediation), enables separated parents to hear and consider their child’s experiences and needs within the mediation process. The aim of child inclusive mediation is to help separated parents reach higher levels of engagement with the needs of their children and expand their capacity to think and plan more cooperatively about their children. It can be an effective part of the mediation process for separated families involved in high levels of conflict.
In child inclusive mediation, a child consultant sees the child in a separate session. The consultant then joins the parents and mediator in a joint session to discuss each child’s experience and needs in a way that meets the parents’ capacity to comprehend and act on.
The role of the child consultant is to provide supportive and judgement-free feedback to help parents reflect on the needs of their children. This encourages recovery from conflict, relationship repair (with the children and co-parent) and helps each party better adjust to the family separation and to sensitively respond to the needs and experiences of their children.
The Child Consultant
- Takes into consideration the interests, views, needs and concerns of the child
- Helps parents get a deep understanding of the child’s experience of the conflict
- Supports and enables the child’s adjustment to the separation journey
- Gives the child a voice in the mediation process between parents
Benefits of child inclusive
mediation vs. Court
Brings the child’s persepctive into mediation
In the child’s own depictions and representations through play and drawing they express their experiences, which also includes verbal statements, expressed wishes and messages for mum and dad.
Provides a developmental picture of the child
In the individual session with the child, the consultant is considering the child’s developmental confidence as well as their difficulties in the face of their parents’ separation and in the context of the child's developmental background.
Gives a safe voice to the child
The child consultant helps the child be heard and understood, enabling them to process more of their experience of the separation. By participating, the child can feel a burden lift and less alone in the separation process.
Helps parents move beyond an entrenched view
By including feedback from the child in the mediation process formulated through the child consultant, parents can make the shift towards healthier and more unified thinking and actions in the best interests of the child.
Provides feedback to parents in a way they can relate to and understand
Brings the child’s separation story to the parents to help them make an informed and positive co-parenting plan for the children. Enables the parents to get an understanding of how the child is coping and what may need to be repaired to help the child stay on a healthy developmental journey.
Provides a foundation for parental reflection
Child inclusive mediation helps parents see and understand the child’s perspective and respond to the child's needs. The process helps parents in high-conflict scenarios differentiate their own needs from the needs of the children.
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Fresh Start Mediation operates Australia wide, offering face to face and online mediation options.
