Keeping in Contact: The Role of Family Relationship Centres in Australia

Family Relationship Centres form the centrepiece of a major new overhaul of the family law system in Australia. The Centres, which will be established in major population centres all over the country by 2008, have a number of different functions. The Centres will have five major roles: information, advice and referral to services which can strengthen relationships; the provision of seminars, individual advice and free mediation when parents separate; assistance in resolving ongoing disputes about post-separation parenting arrangements; assistance to grandparents; and help in resolving child support issues. The author, who was involved in the development of the concept of Family Relationship Centres, explains the background to the proposal and how the Centres are intended to lead to cultural change in the resolution of disputes about parenting after separation.