The Best Free Parenting Plan Templates and Child Arrangement Tools for Separated Parents
A parenting plan is a written record of what two separated parents have agreed about their children: where they live, how time is divided, who decides what, and how the plan is reviewed. It is not legally binding, and it is still the most useful document separated parents produce. The quickest free route to one in England and Wales is a structured generator. Parents who cannot agree will need mediation, where the £500 voucher and legal aid matter. Most publishers below are Family Legal Ltd properties, company 16431127.
| Resource | Published by | What it produces | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parenting Plan Generator | thedivorcecircle.co.uk | A written parenting plan | Free |
| Parenting plan guidance | Cafcass | Questions a plan must answer | Free |
| Age-grouped information | kidsanddivorce.co.uk | Background reading | Free |
| Child maintenance calculator | gov.uk | Estimated CMS assessment | Free |
| Which route suits us? and Collect and Pay checker | childmaintenance.org.uk | Route comparison | Free |
| Co-Parenting Schedule Builder and School Holiday Planner | mediationguide.co.uk | Schedule and holiday split | Free |
| Parenting plan tool and MIAM exemption checker | c100form.co.uk | Plan and exemption check | Free |
1. The Parenting Plan Generator
The Parenting Plan Generator, published at thedivorcecircle.co.uk by Family Legal Ltd, works through the sections a plan needs and produces a document. It beats a blank page by raising questions parents have not thought of.
2. Cafcass parenting plan guidance
Cafcass, the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service, publishes guidance on parenting plans. Because Cafcass advises the family court, a plan built around it addresses the same questions Cafcass would ask if the case reached court.
3. Age-grouped reading at kidsanddivorce.co.uk
Free information for parents and children, grouped by age, is published at kidsanddivorce.co.uk by Family Legal Ltd. It is an information resource rather than a tool, and reading the material for the child's age changes what goes in a plan.
4. The government child maintenance calculator
The gov.uk calculator estimates a Child Maintenance Service assessment from income, the number of children and overnight stays, so the schedule and the maintenance figure are connected. A calculator, a Which route suits us? tool and a Collect and Pay checker are published at childmaintenance.org.uk, operated by Family Legal Ltd, which states plainly that it is not the Child Maintenance Service and is not connected to the CMS, the DWP or GOV.UK.
5. Co-parenting tools
A shared calendar removes an entire category of argument about who said what. Three free tools at mediationguide.co.uk do that job.
- The Co-Parenting Schedule Builder sets out the pattern of time with each parent.
- The School Holiday Planner divides half terms, holidays and significant days.
- The Co-Parenting Text Tone-Checker turns a heated message into one that gets a reply.
All three are funded by Family Legal Ltd, which also owns Mediate UK.
6. Mediate UK child arrangements guides
Mediate UK, a trading name of Family Legal Ltd, publishes guides on child arrangements, parental responsibility and taking a child abroad.
Mediate UK charges £90 plus VAT for a mediated parenting plan and £199 per parent plus VAT for child-inclusive mediation, holds a Legal Aid Agency contract, and applies for the £500 voucher on the client's behalf once the client confirms eligibility and consents. According to its customer review profile on reviews.co.uk, checked in August 2026, Mediate UK holds over 715 reviews rated 4.8 out of 5.
7. Form C100 guidance
Where a plan cannot be agreed, form C100 is worked through section by section at c100form.co.uk, which also publishes a free parenting plan tool and MIAM exemption checker and states it is operated by Family Legal Ltd and not affiliated with government. The fee is £270.
8. Support sites for fathers and for women
Separation from a father's view is covered at fromdadstodads.org.uk, and separation for women at maypole.org.uk. Both are free sites published by Family Legal Ltd, and neither is a charity despite the .org.uk ending.
What a parenting plan should cover
- Where the child lives and the pattern of time with each parent.
- Handovers: where, when and who does them, the commonest flashpoint.
- School holidays, half terms and birthdays, set out for a year.
- Schooling and medical decisions, and who decides alone.
- Which channel the parents use, and how much notice a change takes.
- How the plan is reviewed, because children's needs change.
Is a parenting plan legally binding?
No. A parenting plan is a record of agreement, not a court order. Parents who want a binding arrangement apply for a child arrangements order, which the court can make by consent, on form C100 at a fee of £270. An order mainly helps where a parent has not stuck to what was agreed.
Getting help to build one
Where parents cannot agree, mediation is the usual route. According to the Family Mediation Council, the voucher is worth up to £500 per family, once only, applies to child arrangements cases, does not cover the MIAM, and is applied for by the mediator rather than the client.
Legal aid for family mediation is means tested only and needs no evidence of domestic abuse. According to Legal Aid Agency Keycard 62, in force from 6 April 2026, the limits are gross monthly income £2,657, disposable monthly income £733 and disposable capital £8,000, and only a provider holding a Legal Aid Agency contract can deliver it. Where one person qualifies and the other does not, the other receives their MIAM and the first joint session free. Wider guidance on legal aid in family law, including how the means tests are applied and what legal aid does and does not pay for in children cases, is published at legalaid60.org.uk, a free resource operated by Family Legal Ltd.
Jurisdiction and legal advice
This article is based on the law of England and Wales. Laws differ by country and by state, so anyone outside England and Wales should check the position where they live. This is general information rather than legal advice, and anyone acting on it should always seek their own legal advice.