St. Patrick's Day Child Custody

St. Patrick's Day is a bank holiday on the 17th of March celebrated in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

The day commemorates Saint Patrick, who is known for bringing Christianity to Ireland in the fifth century.

Depending on when the holiday lands, kids get a day off school either midweek or as part of a long weekend.

Due to this variation, it's important that separated parents make a residence and contact schedule to address child custody on St. Patrick's Day and other holidays.

Scheduling options for St. Patrick's Day

Alternate the holiday

Your custody schedule could state that one parent gets St. Patrick's Day in even-numbered years and the other gets it in odd-numbered years.

Make it a fixed holiday

You could agree to give one parent the holiday every year. Often, the holiday goes to the nonresidential parent, since they have limited contact in the regular schedule.

Split the holiday

If your child has just a day off, one parent could have the child for the first part of the day. In this example, Mum has the child from 09:00 to 13:00, and Dad has them from 13:00 to 17:00. This might be useful to accommodate work schedules.

Plan around holiday festivities

St. Patrick's Day celebrations often include street parties, live music and dancing. Consider allowing one parent to have the kid for the street party festivities during the day and the other parent to have them for live music and dancing at night.

Use multiple schedules

A good way to account for year-to-year changes is to agree to multiple arrangements.

For example, your parenting plan could state: "If St. Patrick's Day falls on a Friday or Monday, the parent who does not have the weekend in the regular schedule gets the holiday. If St. Patrick's day falls on a weekday, Mum and Dad will split the holiday."

Be sure to include exact exchange times.

Celebrate together

Another option for parents who get along is celebrating the day together. Seeing parents together can be fulfilling for children. You could even include the kids in planning.

The easiest way to make a holiday contact schedule

There's a lot to think about when you build a holiday schedule. You'll want it to address weekend and midweek holidays, reflect special occasions unique to your family (like birthdays) and work for years to come.

The Custody X Change app makes it easy. Just open your Custody X Change calendar and follow our steps to make a holiday schedule.

To make a residence and contact schedule quickly and affordably, turn to Custody X Change. In no time, you'll have written and visual versions that include the holidays you care about.