Frequently Asked Questions

Unless special circumstances exist, children generally fare best when they have the emotional support and ongoing involvement of both parents. Ongoing parental involvement fosters positive parent-child relationships and healthy emotional and social development. The ability for parents to work as a team, whenever possible, is highly encouraged in order to promote the least detriment to the child.

For further information about your child’s developmental needs, things to consider with regard to parent visitation, and how you can best help your child adjust please see the Resources section for a parent’s guide as well as other online resources, informative websites, and other social service agencies.

Both Supervised Visits and Monitored Exchanges are designed to assure that a child can have safe contact with an absent parent without having to be put in the middle of the parents’ conflicts or other problems. It is the child’s best interest that is paramount in making any decisions regarding the need for supervised visitation. However, there are also some significant benefits to parents. It is our hope that no one will look upon supervised visitation or exchange as a negative or stigmatized service. It is a tool that can help families as they go through difficult and/or transitional times. Some of the benefits for those involved are as follows:

For the children:

• It allows the children to maintain a relationship with both of their parents, something that is generally found to be an important factor in the positive adjustment to family dissolution.
• It allows them to anticipate the visits without stress of worrying about what is going to happen and to enjoy them in a safe, comfortable environment without having to be put in the middle of their parents’ conflict and/or other problems.

For the custodial parents:

• You do not have to communicate or have contact with a person with whom you are in conflict or by whom you might be frightened or intimidated. The arrangements can be made by a neutral party (the visit supervisor) and there does not have to be contact before, during, or after the visits.
• You can relax and feel comfortable allowing your child to have contact with the other parent-and can get some valuable time to yourself.
• Supervised our trained to ensure emotional and physical safety for all participants.

For the non-custodial parents:

• You can be sure that your contact with your children does not have to be interrupted regardless of any personal or interpersonal problems you may be having.
• If allegations have been made against you, which is often the case when supervision is ordered, you can visit without fear of any new accusations because there is someone present who can verify what happened during your time together. When using a professional service, you can also be assured that the supervisors are neutral and objective.

For the courts:

• It provides an opportunity for the children to maintain contact with both parents until the court can make a final decision regarding custody and parenting time.
• It provides input and documentation of parent/child interaction to assist the court in making parental custody and access decisions.

Often there is nothing to prohibit you from using a “non-professional” relative, friend, or acquaintance. Many court orders will allow that as an option provided both parents can agree on who to use. That often does not work out for the following reasons:

First and foremost is the difficulty in finding someone on whom you both agree. If you are having sufficient conflict that supervision was deemed necessary, then chances are very slim you will be able to find an individual that both of you will trust and feel comfortable with. Secondly, it puts a real strain on friendships. Many well-meaning friends and relatives will agree to provide the service but will quickly tire of the regular commitment and/or being in the middle of your conflicts. It is difficult for friends and relatives to refrain from taking sides. Once neutrality is lost, then the credibility of the “supervisor” will come into question and much of the feeling of security and safety will be gone. And, finally, it may actually detract from the quality of the parent/child time together. It is often tempting to spend time interacting with the acquaintance rather than focusing on the child. Children may then come to resent the visits because they feel that they are secondary and not primary in the interaction.