Our Child Contact Centre, called Marietta, can make a real difference in the lives of children by enabling them to have contact with the non-resident parent or other family members in a safe and comfortable environment. Families come to Marietta when it is otherwise not possible for safe, informal and/or unsupervised contact to take place.

The children of divorced or separated parents can get caught up in the ongoing distress and distrust which may exist between their parents, but often they also want to be able to see both Mum and Dad. Experienced staff are on hand to welcome the children and their parents, to help them relax and to reassure them and oversee the contact to try and ensure it is a positive and safe experience for all concerned. Staff will observe the contacts and write reports when requested; sometimes the Court will ask for an assessment to help determine what is best for the children. The information usually goes to the court via Cafcass (the Court Advisory service).

The Child Contact Centre offers a safe and homely environment in a quiet residential area of Didsbury and is a full member of the National Association of Child Contact Centres (NACCC), achieving the higher level of accreditation, Enhanced Accreditation. Marietta provides a range of contact services, including indirect contact, life story work, fully supervised contact and contact assessments, together with reports and Court assessments if required.

A charge is made for this work, which is usually funded by Cafcass - who commission the majority of this work from Caritas. Referrals are also welcome from the Local Authority and by individuals.
 

CASE STUDY

Kevin aged 5, was referred to Marietta by Cafcass in October 2009.

 His father, Martin, lives in London and his mother, Chloe, lives in Stockport. The couple separated  when Kevin was 2, after many months of uncertainty for this little boy, and  his mother returned to the North West, taking Kevin with her.

Chloe then decided she did not want Martin to be a part of Kevin’s life and bitter court battles ensued. The court enlisted the help of Cafcass, who in turn asked Marietta to work on promoting contact between Kevin and Martin.

Kevin is now seeing his father regularly and contact is a source of delight and joy for them both. .  Continued amicable contact will enable Kevin to grow up in the knowledge that he is loved and valued by both parents but It is extremely unlikely that this would have happened, without the commitment and persistence of the staff at Marietta.