Family mediation for separating parents (Australia)

If you are separating in Australia, the usual first step is family dispute resolution, the Australian name for family mediation. The government-funded Family Relationship Centres and the Family Relationship Advice Line are the front door, and Relationships Australia provides the service across the country on a sliding fee scale.

A court will normally expect you to have tried dispute resolution and to hold a certificate saying so before it hears a parenting application, unless there is family violence or urgency. What you agree can be written into a parenting plan, or turned into consent orders by the court if you want it enforceable.

• Family dispute resolution is expected before most parenting applications; the practitioner issues a certificate if it did not resolve things (legalaid.vic.gov.au).
• A parenting plan is a signed written agreement that is not legally enforceable; consent orders are the same agreement approved by the court (legalaid.vic.gov.au).
• Relationships Australia charges on a sliding scale; some services are free for people on low incomes (relationships.org.au).

Sources checked September 2026. Government pages change; the links go to the official page for the latest.

• It is voluntary and confidential, and you can stop at any time.
• Sessions can be held separately if being in the same room is difficult.
• The mediator does not take sides or give legal advice.
• You can still get your own legal advice alongside mediation.

Whatever route you take, a calm shared record helps. ParenThing keeps messages, the calendar, costs and handovers in one private place both parents can see, and your data is held in the EU. See how it works for Australian families.