Hi all,
Christmas is on the way and so is my sons birthday. These should be happy times for families, but for mine seem to be so sad.
DOCs NSW have told me that my son (8) should spend special days (eg birthdays christmas and easter) with his placement family and not with his mother and sister(10)!
Can they do this?
I have unsupervised contact with my son every fortnight and on one of those weekends falls his birthday, so docs have changed my contact weekend so i dont see him for his birthday.
I dont get to see him for christmas either
I even suggested a sort of shared care arrangement where i would have him in the morning or afternoon leaving the other for the placement family but they siad "NO"
What can i do?

Yeah they can and they do.

My 8 year old daughter will be 9 in December and I won't see her unless her birthday falls on a contact visit. It doesn't.

I also won't get to see my girls on Christmas Day because DoCS is closed until early January.

This will be my third Christmas without seeing my girls on Christmas Day.

I would be asking for a reason WHY your contact visits have changed... They need to have a reason.

It is likely to do with the office closing for the season holidays... That's my guess anyway.

Unfortunately I don't think there is much that you can do about it except grin and bear it and let your legal rep know.

The reason for the contact visits changing I have been told is "'H' should spend these days with the placement family"
For the last 2 years i have had 'H' the day befor or after his bithday and christmas eve and good friday. DOCS are now saying that this is not good for 'H'
Can anyone recomend a good lawyer in Canberra or Queanbeyan? Pref skilled in family law?

That is the biggest load of bollocks I have ever heard.

Exactly WHY should he spend these holidays with the carers?

I can't help with the legal rep sorry, I'm in QLD. Hope you find a butt kicker though!!

the childrens commission will tell the dept to listen and that is as far as it will go....they dont listen....the tribunal....forget it , it is the biggest set up and a very fast way to be dammed...they have top barristers and they get gov money....no best interest for the child or family there....and they will not except your paperwork and probably tell your solicitor he has no durastiction in the room so that leaves whom......???????