Whether or not the parents of a child are together as a couple, when both parents actively engage in the care and upbringing of the child, it greatly benefits the child and their development.
In the event of a breakdown of the relationship between the parents, focusing on the child has the potential to enable a more amicable separation and easier resolution of any issues between the couple.
The tendency has been for courts to grant custody and primary responsibility for the child’s care to one parent or the other, while granting access rights to the other parent. It will be no surprise to learn that this may lead to confrontation between the parents and competition for the attention and affection of the child, with adverse effects on all.
As already mentioned, co-parenting is a childcare strategy that can be adopted by the parents whether or not they’re in an active relationship. In either case, co-parenting presents challenges: organising the child’s daily routines, ensuring consistent expectations for the child’s behaviour, and coordinating for school and extracurricular activities.
The challenges are even greater when the parents are not under the same roof.
To facilitate the activities required to make co-parenting work, there are several apps that can help with coordination, finances, and communication. They can also provide a buffer between the parents if their relationship is not amicable.
Here are some of the best, gleaned from online ‘best of’ lists and reviews, and including a summary of relevant comments about the features by the reviewers and providers.