Father tried to stop daughters from travelling abroad to be bridesmaids

Two little sisters had to wait for a family court judge to rule on a dispute between their separated parents before they could be bridesmaids.

Their Malaysian mother wanted to take the girls - aged nine and six - to her home in Malaysia for a family wedding.

But their British father asked Judge Carol Atkinson to block the trip.

He said his ex-wife would not bring the girls back to the UK and he would lose contact with them.

But Judge Atkinson ruled that the trip could take place, after analysing the case at a family court hearing in London.

She decided that the risk of the woman staying in Malaysia with the girls was "virtually non-existent".

The woman had lived in England for more than 15 years, worked as a childminder and had a settled life in south-east London.

She said the girls wanted to go to Malaysia to be bridesmaids.

And she said the advantages of allowing them to be the "centre of attention" and be surrounded by cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents outweighed any risks to their welfare.

Judge Atkinson has not identified the family involved in a written ruling on the case.

She said the couple had separated after eight years together.

Another judge had ruled that the girls should live with their mother and spend time with their father.