Any plan should include contingency plans, even your parenting plan. Contingency plans address the unexpected, and as parents well know, the parenting journey is filled with the unpredictable.
When sharing custody of your child, you must prepare for unforeseen circumstances as best as you can to not only ensure a smooth experience for your child, but reduce conflict with your co-parent.
What kind of contingency plans should you have?
These contingency plans do not refer to an overall “Plan B” of your parenting plan. Instead, they are back up plans. You establish these plans for emergencies.
Most of these plans should address the “what ifs.” They should define what each parent should do in situations including:
- If the other parent does not respond regarding a decision
- Co-parents cannot reach each other
- There is an unexpected change to the parenting schedule
- There is a health emergency or other urgent matter
Of course, you cannot plan for every “what if,” in life. That list is infinite. However, simply considering potential outcomes, and agreeing on how to navigate them, can help both co-parents feel more prepared to act.
Be specific in your backup plans
Consider this example: one parent is unable to reach the other about an urgent matter. Even in this age of constant communication and availability, there are still many times when someone could be unreachable. Perhaps they are on an overseas flight, or merely in an important meeting.
If one parent cannot be reached, but both parents have legal custody – which requires both parents to weigh in on decisions about the child’s life – their parenting plan should outline a contingency plan with specific steps parents can take.
These steps may vary depending on your circumstances and needs. Regardless, you should consider including requirements to:
- Document the attempts to contact the other parent
- Note the need for urgency, such as a specific deadline
- Record the reasoning behind the decision made
These steps are mostly a precaution. Documenting this issue thoroughly could prevent conflict, as well as accusations of violating the terms of your parenting plan.
Even so, if the contingency plans are included within the terms of your parenting plan, then the way forward in these stressful situations is already laid out for you.
The role of a parent seems to change every day. Putting back up plans in place – just in case – allows the entire family to roll with the changes.