Please help me regarding access to my son.

With regard to the Christmas gifts, having Christmas at both homes should not be an issue, but if the gifts you have collected are the ones from "Mummy and Daddy" I would suggest returning some of them, so that he gets gifts from Mum and Dad on Christmas Day, and then more at your home. Presumably he will also have gifts from both sides of the family so it isn't all or nothing, but not having anything from Mummy and Daddy would be upsetting for him.

In relation to the longer term arrangements for Residence and Contact, ifwhat you are proposing is an arrangement where he spends one week i3 with youm and 2 with her, with some contact to you in the 2 weeks he is wiotrh mum, you need to be able to put forward specifc proposals about how this will work.

Things like:

- where you each live, and how close both homes are to his school
- arrangements for communication, to make sure that you can keep each other up to date with anything like Reading or homework.
- consideration of the relationship with his half sister
- Whether it will work in practice for your son - how does he do with changes in routine? Of ourse you would be looking to introduce a new routine, but this is easier for some children than others
- continuity of other parts of his routine. For instance, if he goes to nursery / child minder some days when he is with mum, would you be willing for him to still go (and for you to pay for) that during the week he is with you, so he has continuity (and bear in mind that most chid minders etc won't be able to accommodate 2 weeks out of 3, so will ned to be paid even if he doesn't go the week he is with you.

-What if a 1 week in 3 pattern won't work? What is your alternative? 1 three week cycle rather than a fortnightly one isn't unreasonable, so he spend longer periods with you in the week you shifts mean you are not working than in those where you are, but try to come up with some specifc suggestions - e.g. Thurs-Monday (or Sunday night) rather than just "I want him to be with me more)

Try to listen to what your ex says - just because you and she are not in a good place at present doesn't mean that her views or concerns aren't valid. Don't dismiss them out of hand, but consider what she is saying and how you can address any concerns she has.

Don't focus on %s. It doesn't present well, it's not child-focused.

remember that if you go to court, the issue the court has to look at is what is best for your son. It is not about being 'fair' to you and his mum, but about giving him the bests arrangements possible taking into account issues kike his need for routine and stability, his relationships with siblings etc.