This article is sponsored by Berwins

Family breakdown is never easy, but Christmas can be a particularly distressing time for separated parents and their children.

There is an unrealistic expectation that the festive period should be be perfect, not helped by increasing pressure caused by social media.

This often leads to feelings of anger, frustration and upset when that “perfect” family Christmas can’t be made into a reality.

Arguments can start over where the children will be on Christmas Day. There can also be disagreements about whether new partners should be spending time with the children at Christmas, as well as issues with money.

But it doesn’t always have to be difficult.

Harrogate dad Alex separated from his wife in 2010, when his daughter was three-years-old.

Tough

He described how the first two Christmases apart were a struggle, but then gradually improved in future years thanks to good communication.

He said:

“In that first year it was all quite recent and a little raw. Christmas morning was spent separately at our respective parents, and my daughter was with her mum.

“We then met in a neutral venue, a pub in a rural village, and had a drink and I got to spend some time with my daughter.

“That first year was incredibly tough and getting in the car and driving away from her later in the afternoon was particularly hard.

“The following year my daughter spent the morning with my ex-wife, and then came to my house. It was a little too upsetting for all parties, particularly for my daughter as she just wanted to play with her new things.”

However, as a result, they both agreed that they would then take it in turns each year, which he says has worked out better for everyone ever since.

He said:

“When she is not with us, we have a separate faux Christmas Day and meal on another day as near to the big day as we can, but there is no substitute to having her with you on the day itself.”

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Alex continues to have a good relationship with his ex-wife and says this makes it easier when it comes to Christmas festivities.

He said:

“I think when you have children, the focus of the day itself changes anyway, and you realise that the enjoyment comes from experiencing it through their eyes.

“Once both parties accept that, it’s easy to keep it amicable as you will do everything you can to make it special for the children involved.

“As with every aspect of co-parenting, communication is the key, and if you can keep in touch and keep it friendly (sometimes through gritted teeth), then it makes everything so much better for you and your children.

“I genuinely think my daughter has a wonderful time at Christmas. She gets spoiled by both sides of her family and gets to have two Christmas Days every year.”

Advice

Stephen Root, director of Berwins Solicitors, based in Harrogate, has shared his advice on arrangements for children over the Christmas period.

He said:

• Remember it is not about you spending time with your children, but your children spending time with you and the other parent.
• Try and approach it from your children’s point of view. Will they be happier seeing both of you on Christmas Day, even if that means moving from house-to-house? Or are they better off in one place, perhaps, alternating Christmas Day and Boxing Day between you?
• Try and find an arrangement that suits your family and can be used from year-to-year, perhaps alternating Christmas and the New Year holiday periods between you.
• Try and reach an agreement as early as possible. If everyone knows what the arrangements are there are less likely to be arguments. If there are issues, then the earlier you have begun discussions the more time you have to resolve them.
• If the children are with you all day Christmas Day, do make time for them to speak with the other parent during the day. In most cases children will want to at least speak to the other parent during the festivities.
• Don’t compete with each other. Try and discuss what presents you are getting – consider still buying jointly if you can – and don’t expect your children to eat two Christmas dinners.

A survey of businesses in the Harrogate district has found high levels of confidence, despite months of restrictions.

Harrogate law firm Berwins conducted the survey in the last week of February to gauge confidence as many firms prepare to re-open.

Almost two-thirds (63 per cent) of the approximately 50 respondents were confident about their prospects.

The figure rose to over 70 per cent when asked about the next six or 12 months, suggesting businesses are looking to the future with a renewed sense of optimism.

However, 30 per cent thought the next three months would pose challenges, highlighting short-term concerns.

Part of this growing assurance has been put down the government’s proposed road map.

While the overall handling of the pandemic by central government generated mixed responses, the phased approach to re-opening was generally well received.

Confidence in the wider business community was, however less assured. While firms are broadly positive about their own position, just 30 per cent felt the same way about the local commercial community over the next six months.

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Although that figure improved in the medium term – 50% of respondents were confident about the community over the next 12 months – the gap between business leaders’ perceptions of their own business and the wider community remained.

Paul Berwin, senior partner at Berwins, said:

“Over the past year, we have seen some fantastic examples of enterprise and innovation, which has stood many businesses in good stead. We are now also starting to see wider signs for optimism.

“Tourism and hospitality remain key strands of our local economy and play a crucial role in bringing visitors to our high street.

“I am hopeful that these sectors will be boosted by a roadmap out of restrictions, reports of an increase in people choosing to holiday in the UK and the prospect of major events returning to the convention centre as the Nightingale hospital closes.”

Hospitality businesses across the Harrogate district say they are optimistic about their prospects over the coming months.

As Chancellor Rishi Sunak prepares to unveil the details of his Budget tomorrow, restaurant owners and business leaders say the summer could see a bounce back in their fortunes after months of uncertainty.

With restrictions set to ease, local businesses are anticipating high demand as case numbers fall and the vaccination programme brings renewed confidence.

Jo Straker, who runs William & Victoria restaurant in Harrogate with her husband David, said there was “light at the end of the tunnel” after a very difficult start to the year:

“We expect to be busy when we reopen and I think the local economy will be buoyant with people desperate to socialise, have some pampering, go shopping, enjoy sport, culture and freedom of going further afield. We will be more appreciative of the things we couldn’t have during lockdown and desperate to get out and enjoy living life again.

“The summer is looking promising with many choosing to holiday in Britain this year. Harrogate and North Yorkshire will be a big draw for domestic tourism so I am optimistic that the local economy will start to recover if everything goes to plan, we take the necessary precautions to keep each other safe and get the financial support to help us recover.”

Mrs Straker also said last summer’s Eat Out to Help Out had been positive for the restaurant, though it meant the beginning of the week was very busy before a drop-off in demand on Thursday. She said she hoped for a similar scheme including more days of the week, or perhaps a voucher scheme which would encourage people to spend locally over a period of time.

David and Jo Straker, owners of William and Victoria restaurant in Harrogate

There are also broader measures across all sectors which she said would help the business to survive the coming weeks and months.

“We are hoping, and expecting, the Budget to announce the continued VAT reduction at 5% and business rates holiday as well as an extension to flexible furlough.

“All these have been critical to the survival of the business. Takeaway keeps us ticking along but it’s not enough to cover all our fixed costs.

“We’re expecting Corporation Tax to go up. Although this is something we usually dread, it won’t have a huge impact on our business this year since we have only been able to open for five months of this financial year and that’s with considerable restrictions, so would be fortunate to break even.

“Despite all this, we are optimistic for the future and a full recovery over time with the correct financial help put in place and the continued support of our customers.”

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Across the Harrogate district, as well as businesses directly involved in hospitality, there are many which work with them and have been hit by their lack of trade in the last year. Paul Berwin, senior partner at Berwins solicitors, said it was not just the hotels, cafes and restaurants that needed help to get back on their feet.

“Those businesses which have been unable to operate, or only able to do so spasmodically, need proper funding so that reopening is sustained, and beneficial.

“With a local economy so heavily focussed on hospitality and tourism, which I think will recover, the businesses serving those sectors need to be helped.” 

The latest statistics show that the Harrogate district is bucking the national trend in terms of employment, with the number of people out of work sitting at 3.7% compared to a UK-wide figure of 6.2%.

For Teresa Bowe, owner of CCF Accountancy, this could help to support the hospitality industry as it tries to get back on its feet. She said:

“From what I have seen in my own clients’ situations, there are more people better off or the same, rather than worse off as a result of the covid situation.

“I think a lot of working practices that came in as a result of the lockdowns will stay, such as flexibility on working. I expect things to bounce back reasonably quickly.

“I think the prospects for the next 12 months are good, assuming that the virus is kept at bay.”

Businesses preparing to return to work after the coronavirus lockdown could be doing so in completely different ways – and employment levels in the Harrogate district could take a hit.

Mike Patterson, head of employment law at Berwins, said many businesses may have found the enforced change actually suits them and they will keep some of the new ways of working even after lockdown ends.

However, he said there are still many tough weeks ahead for businesses, especially as the furlough scheme changes from August.

“Initially, we were dealing with lots of queries about furloughing. We’re now starting to get into post-lockdown, getting business back up and running. A lot of people were waiting for Boris’s roadmap to see the timetable to get people back to work.”

Mike Patterson of Berwins Solicitors

A series of announcements, changes and retractions in advice since the beginning of the crisis, have made it harder for lawyers, accountants and others to keep up with the latest situation in order to advise their clients, Mr Patterson said. The furlough regulations, for example, were produced in one large document and, when the scheme was tweaked, the document was updated but no information was published about what had been changed, leaving advisors to read it repeatedly to find the updates.

The way the announcements were made this week also gave some businesses and employees hardly any notice, from Sunday evening, that they could be expected back at work the following day. Mr Patterson added:

“I would have felt more comfortable if it was a consistent message with the rest of the UK. I like to think I’ve got a bit of common sense, but everybody’s different in what’s normal, what they think they should do.

“You’re saying tomorrow at 8am people who can’t work from home should go to work? You’re putting it back on the employee to take that decision as to whether it’s safe to go in? That’s pretty unfair in terms of lack of notice and lack of planning.”

Now, many businesses are looking at how they can resume more normal working in the coming weeks and months. The extension of the furlough scheme and the possibility of bringing staff back part-time while the economy gets moving again has been met with relief.

“Speaking to a few businesses and seeing what people are doing, that’s quite a welcome move. Businesses are nervous of this cliff edge the chancellor keeps speaking about. It’s not going to be back to normal over night, it’s going to take time. It helps to have flexibility and phased returns.”

Physical presence

The practical aspects of returning to work are at the top of business owners’ lists of priorities, he said. Enabling social distancing and other aspects of health and safety in workplaces all have to be considered, but businesses are also looking at whether returning to previous operations is even necessary or desirable.

“The traditional view of ‘we have got to be physically present,’, that’s potentially going to be something of the past. Their arm has been forced, given this: they have got to adapt and allow home working. It comes back to physical presence and it will impact on the space they need.”

For some businesses, there has been very little change to how they work. For others, whether changing the services they offer or allowing greater flexibility as parents juggle working hours with childcare, it has been a period of operating differently.

Mr Patterson said the return to work will have to have an element of flexibility too, for both employers and employees, as different sectors return to trading at different speeds.

In the long term, Mr Patterson said it is inevitable some businesses will be forced to make cuts:

“The furlough is a welcome safety net for businesses and employers. The reality is it’s maybe a bit of a honeymoon period that will have to come to an end and businesses will have to make difficult decisions.”