Children and adolescents’ experiences of using supervised services: balancing safety and continued parent-child relationships post separation and divorce

• Supervised services provided a safe method for children to maintain contact with their parents. • Most children understood that the paramount focus of supervised services is their safety and the protection of the primary parent (including being free from verbal abuse or abusive confrontations with the other parent). • While earlier studies suggested that children seemed unaware of why their contact with a parent was supervised, this qualitative study suggests that children may have a greater voice and more control. • Children find it empowering and supportive when allowed to express whether they want to visit or end a visit. • Older children found using facilities designed for younger children difficult or tedious, as in other studies