PROM NIGHT STRESS

As if being a high schooler isn’t tough enough, the pressures of prom can weigh heavily on your teen. Here are some tips on how to talk about what’s expected of her, some of the situations she may find herself in, and how you can be there to help your teenager deal with prom peer pressure.

PEP TALK

Although prom night is filled with anticipation of fun, your teen may be feeling anxious about the big night, too. If your teenager is without a date, worried about keeping up with his friends, or concerned with sex expectations, parents are probably the last people with whom he wants to discuss this.
When the pre-prom pep talk is approached strategically, the conversation can benefit both parents and teens. According to Teen Communication Expert Josh Shipp, the best way to approach your teen about prom is to state the obvious and follow up with some advice.
For example, Shipp suggests you open with a conversation starter such as, "Honey, let's get this over with and have the awkward parent/child prom talk. I want you to have a good time and be safe. If you find yourself in a situation you know you shouldn't be in, call me and I'll come get you. NO QUESTIONS ASKED."
Here are some other prom concerns with which your teen may be grappling:

CASH

Whether the Bank-of-Mom-and-Dad is funding this night of fun, or your teen is using his part-time paycheck, keeping up with his classmates may feel mandatory. Giving your prom-goer a budget will keep spending in check.
If your teen gives you a hard time about the currency cap, here are some creative ways to maximize results without tapping out her cash flow:

• Share a limo with friends.
• Rent a tux that is a designer look-alike.
• Spend less on the dress and let the accessories take center stage.
• Opt for the lesser-known brand of heels.
• Pick up a larger single-flower boutonniere and corsage.

DRINKING

Yes, prom night is known for teen drinking, but this doesn't necessarily mean your teen is going to drink. Should she find herself in a situation where the pressure to join in is in full force, or if she chooses to partake in the partying, here are a few tips to share with her:

• Carry around a cup with a drink without drinking it to avoid pressure from friends.
• Never accept an open drink; you never know what may be lurking in it.
• If you end up drinking, have an, "at any time, from anywhere" ride policy.
• Never get behind the wheel if you have had even the least bit of alcohol.
• Never get into a vehicle where the person behind the wheel has been drinking.

SEX

For decades, "prom night" has been virtually synonymous with "sex." Whether she's going to an after party or staying at an all-nighter with friends, let your teen know that she does not have to give in to "sexpectations." Offer these tips to help her avoid giving in to peer pressure during the post-prom scene:

• Be up front; do not let your prom date assume that you're on the same page.
• Let your friends know you're not ready for that big step, and ask them to stick with you.
• Do not put yourself in a situation where too much privacy is possible, such as a hotel room.
• Use your curfew as an excuse to get out of an uncomfortable situation.

After you lay out the ground rules, offer advice, and make it through curfew negotiations, remember to tell them to have fun. It's prom night!

MORE WAYS TO COMMUNICATE WITH YOUR TEEN

• Connecting with your kids: Strategies for tough conversations
• Teach your tween to deal with anger effectively
• 7 Books to read aloud with your teen or tween

source 

As if being a high schooler isn’t tough enough, the pressures of prom can weigh heavily on your teen. Here are some tips on how to talk about what’s expected of her, some of the situations she may find herself in, and how you can be there to help your teenager deal with prom peer pressure.

PEP TALK

Although prom night is filled with anticipation of fun, your teen may be feeling anxious about the big night, too. If your teenager is without a date, worried about keeping up with his friends, or concerned with sex expectations, parents are probably the last people with whom he wants to discuss this.
When the pre-prom pep talk is approached strategically, the conversation can benefit both parents and teens. According to Teen Communication Expert Josh Shipp, the best way to approach your teen about prom is to state the obvious and follow up with some advice.
For example, Shipp suggests you open with a conversation starter such as, "Honey, let's get this over with and have the awkward parent/child prom talk. I want you to have a good time and be safe. If you find yourself in a situation you know you shouldn't be in, call me and I'll come get you. NO QUESTIONS ASKED."
Here are some other prom concerns with which your teen may be grappling:

CASH

Whether the Bank-of-Mom-and-Dad is funding this night of fun, or your teen is using his part-time paycheck, keeping up with his classmates may feel mandatory. Giving your prom-goer a budget will keep spending in check.
If your teen gives you a hard time about the currency cap, here are some creative ways to maximize results without tapping out her cash flow:

• Share a limo with friends.
• Rent a tux that is a designer look-alike.
• Spend less on the dress and let the accessories take center stage.
• Opt for the lesser-known brand of heels.
• Pick up a larger single-flower boutonniere and corsage.

DRINKING

Yes, prom night is known for teen drinking, but this doesn't necessarily mean your teen is going to drink. Should she find herself in a situation where the pressure to join in is in full force, or if she chooses to partake in the partying, here are a few tips to share with her:

• Carry around a cup with a drink without drinking it to avoid pressure from friends.
• Never accept an open drink; you never know what may be lurking in it.
• If you end up drinking, have an, "at any time, from anywhere" ride policy.
• Never get behind the wheel if you have had even the least bit of alcohol.
• Never get into a vehicle where the person behind the wheel has been drinking.

SEX

For decades, "prom night" has been virtually synonymous with "sex." Whether she's going to an after party or staying at an all-nighter with friends, let your teen know that she does not have to give in to "sexpectations." Offer these tips to help her avoid giving in to peer pressure during the post-prom scene:

• Be up front; do not let your prom date assume that you're on the same page.
• Let your friends know you're not ready for that big step, and ask them to stick with you.
• Do not put yourself in a situation where too much privacy is possible, such as a hotel room.
• Use your curfew as an excuse to get out of an uncomfortable situation.

After you lay out the ground rules, offer advice, and make it through curfew negotiations, remember to tell them to have fun. It's prom night!

MORE WAYS TO COMMUNICATE WITH YOUR TEEN

• Connecting with your kids: Strategies for tough conversations
• Teach your tween to deal with anger effectively
• 7 Books to read aloud with your teen or tween

How British children have embraced the high school prom

As the end of the academic year approaches, British youngsters will be searching for taffeta and stretch limos

Young girls enjoy a stretch limo ride to the school prom Photograph: Rex Features/Newspix

Piles of taffeta, ruffles, tiaras, heels and gallons of fake tan are accumulating in teenage bedrooms around the country, and heads are full of notions of stretch limousines and corsages. The UK's school prom season is gearing up for its biggest year yet.

A trend that arrived from the US on the back of incredibly successful high- school TV shows such as Glee and Hannah Montana, and teen movies such as High School Musical, it has swiftly become the norm forschools here. Where once an end-of-school formal dance or ball might have been held, or even a disco in the school hall, now it has become a major event to celebrate either the end of exam season or even, as the trend gets younger, the end of primary school education.

For recession-hit families the cost of the event is less welcome, but for many businesses the trend is helping keep them afloat. Last year the Holiday Inn saw a 5,000% increase in the number of proms being booked in its hotels and parents were shelling out an average of £244 per teenager.

While this year has a proliferation of prom dresses on sites like Ebay at bargain prices, the prom season is still proving a goldmine for British businesses.

"For the first time this year we've sold more men's suits for proms than we do at Christmas," said Dave Shaw, the marketing manager of men's wear chain Moss Bros.

"The prom business is certainly phenomenal now. And because a lot of boys will need a suit anyway as they leave school and start going for interviews or whatever, the sales are doing better than our hire market. There is already a move, however, away this year from the more traditional style of formal suit towards the more modern, straighter shape and coloured suits."

There are even "prom management" companies. Prom World set up in the Midlands last year, and the Prom Show is becoming a regular event on the Wedding Fair circuit, where exhibitors from dressmakers to photographers show off their wares.

But if all the boys need is a sharp suit and a fresh jar of hair gel, the girls need hair, makeup, nails, jewellery and of course, the dress. "It's all about the dream dress," said Linda Ellison of Prom Frock UK, based in Wigan and currently rushed off her feet by the prom season.

"Prom dresses are flying out of our shop," she said. "We saw the trend coming by chance, as my eldest daughter asked me to get her one and we ordered a few from our suppliers. That was only a few years ago and now we're selling 400 through our shop and 6,500 a year through our stockists.

"It's different from the American prom in that they tend to be aged around 18 or 19 for their prom, whereas our girls will be a bit younger, so dresses are less revealing. We have our own twist – not too risque – but still on trend. It's a very vibrant part of the economy up here."

"I think this year the market has hit the top – there are signs it's stabilising," she said. "Every school is doing it, so it is nearing saturation point."

Companies such as Glasgow-based Katy Moon, making bespoke brides' tiaras, who were in the wedding business, have found a new market coming to them as young girls want that same special day experience.

"The tiara has arrived this year for sure. And thank God for it," said hairdresser Sandra McKenzie, who works for a company in the Midlands which offers "Prom Day Deals" for groups of girls. "It's been a slow year and we certainly needed the boost: we've done loads of extensions already ahead of the proms, and have quite a few mobile bookings for styling a group together. It's like weddings except much more fun.

"Curling is big. Big hair is big! Ringlets and the romantic look – I've noticed a lot are really going for the My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding look in their dresses."

But it has exploded so fast that schools are not yet doing what US high schools have long learned to do: co-ordinate. "They will all have them on the same date – they don't think, so we could have rented out 50 cars for June and July if we'd had them," said limousine company boss Daniel Roberts.

"There's a lot being disappointed and all the kids can't get the cars they want. They all go for the same perhaps eight or 10 dates through June and July around us and then they can't get the bookings because we're booked solid. None of the schools think to liaise," said Roberts, of Star Limousines, which rents out the stretch vehicles around Brighton, London and the south east.

He imports and sells the stretch vehicles from the US and said that, while many people would like to get into the business, banks were not supporting them. "People can't get the finance to set up, and with the fuel costs it's not easy to get started.

"It's a booming business. We're taking bookings for 2013 prom season. But the big increase for us is in primary schools having cars for their end of terms."

source http://www.theguardian.com/society/2012/jun/03/high-school-proms-in-britain

Stretch limos, spray tans and the £500 dresses: The unstoppable (and ludicrously expensive) rise of the high school prom

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1372539/Stretch-limos-spray-tans-500-dresses--unstoppable-ludicrously-expensive-rise-high-school-prom.html   

Saturday morning at a dress emporium in the Midlands, and dozens of excitable young women — here strictly by appointment only — are waiting to be measured up in one of the store’s ten fitting rooms.

Around them are rails of eye-catching frocks covered in ruffles, sequins and diamante. As they browse, the air is filled with excitable talk of hairstyles, fake tans, make-up and jewellery.

It’s familiar territory, of course, for anyone who has accompanied a daughter, sister or friend to a bridal fitting — but these young women are 15 and 16-year-old schoolgirls and are not getting married any time soon.

Belles of the ball: Girls from Morley High School head off to their prom in a stretch limo

Instead, they have arrived at the Fashion Factory in Cannock, Staffordshire, to be kitted out for their annual school prom. It’s an expensive business: by the time they’ve left, their mothers will have shelled out an average of £250 on that special dress, as well as committing to hundreds of pounds more for hairdressing, professional make-up and limousine hire.

It may all sound terribly un-British but make no mistake, the high-school prom, once the preserve of Hollywood movies, is fast becoming big business here. 

Inspired by films like High School Musical and the television show Glee, British teens are no longer content with the traditional end-of-term school disco and a plastic cup of lemonade to mark the end of their senior school years.

Instead the majority of state and independent secondary schools now celebrate the occasion in swish hotel function rooms with the graduating year walking down red carpets in designer dresses.

‘The mums all come in with a figure in mind but that usually goes out the window when they see how lovely their daughter looks in the dress she’s set her heart on.’

Such is the phenomenon’s iron grip on the British teen’s imagination that a new word has entered the lexicon: the Promzilla, a particular kind of prom-obsessed adolescent.

There’s certainly no shortage of them at the Fashion Factory on any given Saturday. Previously a standard ladies and gents clothing emporium, in a matter of three years the store has gone from selling prom dresses as a small sideline to devoting more than half its 4,000 square foot of floor space to an orgy of silk, satin and net.

This year they are on course to sell 3,000 outfits to the young women and their mothers who have travelled from all over the country to source the perfect outfit.  

Like a peculiar hybrid of a B&Q warehouse and a giant Barbie’s wardrobe, it is overseen by manager Christine Roland, who runs such a tight ship that every single dress that is sold is registered so that no two girls (heaven forbid!) will attend their school prom looking the same.

‘The prom frenzy is incredible,’ she says. 

‘We’ve already got girls coming in to book their prom dresses for summer 2012. 

'It’s a fabulous experience for them. We say it’s like the X Factor. The mums all sit in a row outside the changing rooms, and the girls all parade and get a “yes” or “no”.’

Certainly, the recession seems a distant thing here — Christine tells me that two £550 ‘high-end’ dresses ordered in especially from the U.S. last month, to test the water, sold within two days. She’s now placed a rush order for dozens more. The prom dress purchase, it seems, is something of a budget-blowing experience.  

Top 10- Rules Divorcing Couples should follow

 you can find the fulll and original informatiojn of this on this website   http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/05/laura-wasser_n_4045525.html

1. Communicate your expectations, in marriage and in divorce: Throughout any relationship, communication is crucial. If you are in a serious relationship and living together or entering into a marriage contract, it is very important to discuss expectations prior to doing so. These expectations could include anything from how to raise your children, where you will live, what kind of vacations you like to take and financial expectations. A prenuptial agreement is one way of leading into that conversation. I am always astounded at the couples who come to me after being married for some period of time and reveal that they never had such a conversation, whether or not a prenuptial agreement was in place. Conversations about money certainly are not sexy, but they should give each of you some clarity and enable you to enter into your marriage with a better understanding of each other and what is important. Work and home responsibilities, joint or separate accounts, budgets, etc. are all subjects which should be discussed.

2.  Get counseling: One of the first chapters of my book is called "How Do You Know?." Generally, there are no lightning bolts or magical signs that tell you when it is time to get divorced. When the bad starts outweighing the good on a consistent basis, you may feel that taking the next step is appropriate. It is a very personal decision and most likely should be arrived upon with the help of some kind of counseling or support.

3.  Put your children first: Many parents say that this is their goal but seem to forget it during the throes of the divorce process. If you can keep your children's best interests first and foremost in your mind, other issues will fall into place.

4.  Be kind: Treat your spouse or partner the way you would like to be treated yourself. Once you do embark upon the separation or divorce process, it is very important to remember three key things: Be kind, be reasonable, be brief. Remember that this person will no longer be your spouse, but he or she will continue to be your co-parent, family member and perhaps business partner in certain assets or entities. Even if one or both of you lacked consideration or compassion during your marriage, this is the time to exhibit those qualities.

5.  Remember that this is a business transaction: Like the marriage contract you entered into, your divorce is a legal transaction. Treat it that way. Try not to let emotion, hurt, fear or anger dictate the circumstances of your discussions or negotiations. Try to keep your emotions out of the process and things will move more smoothly.

6.  Do your research when lawyering up: If it turns out that you do need the assistance of an attorney to help you through the divorce process, here are some tips for choosing one: In seeking a lawyer, you are looking for an advocate, an expert advisor on the law and on your rights and responsibilities, a strategist, a negotiator, and a litigator. But remember: No lawyer is as invested as you are in the outcome of the process, so it is necessary to become and stay involved in the process; that is also the best help you provide to your lawyer. Find a pool of lawyers from whom to choose, solicit referrals from other professionals you know or deal with — an accountant, banker, business leader. Check out Bar Association listings as well, and don’t neglect internet research. An in-person meeting is worthwhile, even if you pay for it, to explore the lawyer’s record of achieving settlements via mediation/negotiation vs. via court proceedings, to get a feel for the lawyer’s manner, and to see if there is chemistry and a sense of comfort between you. In a preliminary consultation, determine the lawyer’s fees, terms, and schedule availability.

7.  Keep in mind that your attorney is not your therapist: While it is important to have a support system while going through the process, your lawyer is not qualified (and is generally billing at too high a rate) to be your mental health provider. Keep the legal and the emotional separate and you will save on fees.

8.  Be creative: There is probably no such thing as a good divorce, but clinging to an old idea of how relationships are unraveled can make a bad thing even worse. That there is a whole new way to dissolve your relationship -- really a whole new choice of ways to do it. The evolution in family law has been accompanied by advances in mediation, collaborative practice, and self-representation, by the development of support and counseling practices, and by a substantive body of data on the impact of dissolution, direct and indirect, on all parties. And there is a whole new cadre of divorce lawyers -- like me -- who know how to help their clients navigate this new territory and emerge from it strong in mind, spirit, and resources and eager to move on to the next stage of their lives.

9.  Live your life: Do not let your divorce take over your life. You have responsibilities, commitments and non-divorce related activities to attend to. It is OK to take a break from your divorce even as you are controlling the process. Do not micro-manage the process.

10.  Stick together even as you are coming apart: If you have children, consider that you will always will be a family even if you are not living under the same roof. That is the point you need to make to your children not only when you sit down and tell them you are splitting up, but in every bit of follow-up. Forever, actually. This message needs to be branded onto the brains of all participants: This is us; we are a family, a unique and special configuration with a unique and special body of experience to our name and whatever our living arrangements, the configuration does not change. Think like a family member, act as a united front and have your ex's back when it comes to members of the extended family, your children, teachers and school administrators, etc. This will send a message to your children and to your ex and help you not only throughout the dissolution process, but beyond.

Marriage Problems That Lead To Divorce After Decades

you can find this artcle on this website  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/09/marriage-problems_n_3869273.html

When Ann Morgan James’ husband asked her for a divorce just two months shy of their 18th wedding anniversary, she was blindsided. The California author says she was fully aware the couple was having trouble, but believed they could make the relationship work. Her husband, apparently, did not. He asked her for a divorce and now the couple shares legal custody of their 14-year-old son.

 Most of us are shocked to hear divorce news when it concerns a couple who spent more than a decade together. We wonder how they could have invested so much time into their relationship, only to declare it no longer works. Danielle Horwich, a licensed clinical social worker in Los Angeles, says while there are no easy answers, there may be some obvious reasons behind the demise of a long and (what appeared to be) happy marriage.

 A Loss of Connection

 One reason behind the collapse of a longtime marriage could be that some couples may feel a loss of connection with each other once their children are grown and their day-to-day lives are no longer about parenting and building a home for their kids.

“After 20 or so years, when the children have gone, entered college, or begun families of their own, the couple must look towards each other and ask themselves: without our children what do we have?” says Horwich. “Some couples will see this transition as a vibrant opportunity to embark on new adventures. Others, will look towards one another and see they no longer recognize and understand the partner they married.”

 A Realization That Life is Short

 Rob L., a divorced non-profit executive in Minnesota, ended his 27-year marriage after being critically injured in a vehicle accident. “One day I was riding home from work on my scooter when a motorist didn’t see me. I woke up seven weeks later with my jaw wired shut and unable to move,” explained Rob. “When I was able to take in all that had occurred, I decided life was too precious to live in a dead, lonely marriage any longer.”

 According to Horwich, individuals may feel the need to take on a new path in mid-life. Many of us begin to face the eventual inevitability of our own mortality between the ages of 40 and 65. “As mid-lifers encounter the reality of limited years, many reevaluate their success thus far,” explains Horwich. “They ask questions like, ‘Am I meeting my life goals? Am I leaving a positive mark on the world? Do I have new goals I would like to achieve?’ These are the challenges that offer the couple an opportunity to grow together or separate towards divorce.”

 A Lack of Coping Skills

 While midlife may be the time in which you are supposed to coast into your golden years, it’s also the time when life can present quite difficult circumstances. Health issues, caring for aging parents, and dealing with the death of loved ones all become more common occurrences in midlife, and require great adaptation and coping skills for couples. If a couple doesn’t have the coping skills necessary to make it through a major traumatic event, it could lead to a breakdown between the two of them.

 “Rigidity and inflexibility to new roles and new habits is often what leads a marriage to break in the midst of these changes,” explains Horwich. “Conflict is inevitable, yet how the couple manages this conflict will be essential to their success.”

 Ann Morgan James wanted to deal with the conflict in her marriage, but that wasn’t necessarily true of her husband. “I came from a place where I would never think of leaving him, I thought we would work things out,” she said. “However, he came from a place where you just leave. There was no talking, no fixing, it was just over.”

 While all couples are bound to face major life changes and traumatic events throughout the evolution of their relationship, it doesn’t have to mean their love is doomed. Horwich says there are plenty of things couples can do now to ensure their marriage endures the long-haul:

• Remain connected as a couple during child rearing.
• Schedule regular date nights (where talking about the kids is off limits).
• Plan nights away for just the two of you.
• Begin asking yourself today how you want to be living your life. What are your genuine life goals? Have you begun pursuing them in any way, and can you?
• Commit to being self-aware and communicate your dreams, fears, and desires to your partner.
• See your partner, listen to your partner and notice how he/she is evolving.
• Learn to use productive communication skills.
• Work on the challenges of your marriage today. Begin now.
• Notice if you are rigid or inflexible when changes occur. See if you can let go.
• Short or long-term therapy to manage these tasks is well worth the investment for a marriage that continues till death do us part. (Plus, it’s much less expensive than a divorce!)

why do married couple divorce?

THIS VIDEO THAT I HAVE MANAGED TO FIND IS FROM YOUTUBE. YIU CAN WATCH THIS VIDEO HERE -------->  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOkvrDI-3UY]

THIS IS A VIDEO ABOUT WHY COUPLES DIVORCE.THIS VIDEO MAY RELATE TO MY COURSEWORK BECAUSE I AM DOING SOMETHING WHICH IS ABOUT DIVORCE.

 this one is a video of why we love and why do we divorce?
you can find this video on this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIyoUwXFyu4

Divorce ARTICLE about FAMILY LIFE

you can find the full story of this article on http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/sex/divorce/10409240/Disastrous-drop-in-out-of-court-mediation-for-divorcing-couples.html

'Disastrous' drop in out-of-court mediation for divorcing couples

The number of divorcing couples using special out-of-court sessions to settle disputes over property and children has collapsed in the wake of legal aid cuts

Thousands of divorcing couples and their children are being drawn into bitter but avoidable court battles in the wake of Government cuts to legal aid, stark new figures show.

The changes have triggered a virtual collapse in an alternative system designed to help families facing separation reach agreement over their property and children’s upbringing without going to court, they suggest.

According the figures obtained from the Ministry of Justice under the Freedom of Information Act, the number of couples inquiring about formal mediation has halved since the cuts came into force in April.

Meanwhile the number of couples formally entering into the process – which the Government has hailed as an alternative to costly and often bitter litigation – is down by a third in that time.

It has been accompanied by a surge in the numbers of people applying directly to courts, often without the help of a lawyer, for rulings on contentious and complex issues such as contact with their children.

Family Lawyers said the dramatic drop bore out warnings that the cuts could trigger the collapse of the family court system which is already under strain.

They said that there is already evidence of cases being delayed and simple processes which could once have been completed in a day now taking weeks or months because of the extra pressure on court staff.

From April of this year legal aid has no longer been available in most divorce cases except in extreme cases such as where there are allegations of domestic violence.

As a result lawyers have reported receiving fewer initial consultations from couples who chose instead to represent themselves in court without legal advice for fear of what it would cost.

But family solicitors are required by law to advise them about the possibility of mediation, a formal process in which they could reach a legally binding settlement relatively amicably without having to go before a judge.

According to figures from the MoJ, only 6,090 couples attended a formal meeting to explore mediation options between April and August of this year in England and Wales – down from 12,415 in the same period last year.

Only 4,000 went on to embark on mediation in the first five months of the new system, down by 33 per cent.

But the figures, obtained by the mediation group lawyersupportedmediation.com, suggest that the situation may be getting worse. While the number of new mediations begin in May was down by 36 per cent on the previous year, in August the year-on-year decline was 47 per cent.

Marc Lopatin, the group’s founder, said: “The news is disastrous for separating families on all incomes.

“Family mediation is demonstrably successful given over two-thirds of people who decide to mediate, go on to reach agreement.”

Rachel Duke, head of family at the London law firm Ronald Fletcher Baker, said it was obvious that the influx of people registering applications directly with courts rather than going to mediation was slowing the whole system down.

“It hasn’t ground to a halt yet but it sometimes feels like it,” she said.

“The court process has built in an emphasis on helping parties reach agreement but inevitably there is a certain element of polarisation that happens whenever you enter into the court system.

“People who represent themselves can feel quite defensive, helpless and lost, not quite knowing what is going on.

“If they are responding to an application they turn up at court having received papers, not always understanding why and potentially in the middle of all this are the children.”

Lord McNally, the family justice minister said: "We are aware there has been a recent drop in referrals to mediation and are working closely with the Family Mediation Council and legal profession to address this.

Mediation can be quicker and cheaper than stressful family court battles and often produce better results - which is why we are committed to helping more separating families to use the excellent services available.

"Last year almost 17,000 people successfully used publicly funded family mediation and we have ensured that millions of pounds of legal aid remains available to pay for anyone eligible. We are also now changing the law so anyone considering court action over disputes about children or finances will be legally obliged to attend a mediation meeting first.

My thoughts about this article

Personally if i was the one who just got married and then a few  years later my husband decides to file a divorce I would not be so happy. if we have a child together he/she would not be so happy experiencing that experience because it is obvious that they cannot let one of their parents go. 

Never mind having a lot of arguments or fights that is too normal for a couple but I think that having a divorce is not good because it can affect not only both of the couples life but their children's life because they will feel left out. they will not get used to not having both of their parents. 

I would never sign a paper for the annulment as they call it, because if it was my his fault then he should be the one to care for it because what he has done is not right then in that way I would maybe say yes to the divorce. it depends about how big the problem is.