Fathers are to be given better access rights to their children following family break-ups.

The government said yesterday that new "parenting plans" for custody arrangements, which will assume that fathers should have reasonable access, will be drawn up with the help of counsellors.

Jack O'Sullivan, of the lobby group Fathers Direct, said: "Parenting plans offer a great opportunity for both parents to be properly involved and to have a say in the way their children are brought up."