David Cameron Reply

Dear Mrs Jackson, I am writing on behalf of David Cameron to thank you for your e-mail. I am sorry for the delay in my reply. David is grateful to you for raising this important issue with him, and he understands the sadness and frustration which many children and grandparents feel because of separation. We believe that the family is the most important institution in Britain, and that we must look into ways of supporting families and encouraging marriage if we are serious about tackling the causes of poverty and social breakdown. While we would like to see more parents stay together, we do understand that there are times when sadly the separation of parents is the only course of action available. In these circumstances, it is very important for children to enjoy stable relationships with members of their extended family. David very much agrees with you that it is in the interests of children to be able to have contact with their grandparents, and has said publicly that grandparents should continue to have access to grandchildren when families break up unless there is a good reason to the contrary. Many children benefit enormously from the care, support, and attention of their grandparents. We would like to see these opportunities extended to more children whose parents live apart. Following on from the UNICEF report in 2007 which showed that British children were the unhappiest in the Western world, David Cameron commissioned David Willetts to look into the problems of modern childhood as part of the Childhood Review. The Review emphasised the importance of the extended family for children’s well-being and called for the law to be changed so that Courts must take into consideration the desirability of contact between the child and their extended family. The Shadow Cabinet is examining closely the recommendation the Childhood Review about grandparents’ access to children from broken families. Thank you, once again, for writing to David Cameron and outlining your concerns on this important issue. Yours sincerely, Lara Moreno Perez Office of the Leader of the Opposition House of Commons London SW1A 0AA