People in the UK have around 20 million small pension pots worth under £10,000 each. These small deferred pension pots have been accumulated as people change employment during their working lives. Many of the pension pots are very small and therefore expensive to run and that results in lower returns. Read more…
What the law says about dividing finances and property on divorce is lacking – including among divorcees themselves. The study, by the University of Bristol, found that less than half of ten statements were correctly identified as either true or false. The levels of understanding was only slightly better among Read more…
One in every six parents can’t spot the signs of emotional abuse. The NSPCC asked parents to identify what would count as emotional abuse. The scenarios that were wrongly identified as emotional abuse include: Being over-controlling of a child Never showing any emotions in interactions with a child Pushing a Read more…
Measures to protect women and girls from violence are to be improved by putting specialists in domestic abuse in 999 call centres. Last year, the police recorded 100 offences related to domestic abuse every hour. This new initiative aims to ensure that calls for help are treated urgently and that Read more…
A separating family attends a Mediation Information Assessment Meeting (MIAM) for a mediator to assess the issues that must be resolved. They will check if you are eligible for a voucher, whether the dispute or application concerns a child, and whether you are involved in financial matters related to a Read more…
More than 27,000 separating families have saved money, protected their children and avoided lengthy, expensive and combative courtroom battles, thanks to a £23 million government scheme. The Family Mediation Voucher Scheme provides funding to help families navigate the complexities of separation, allowing them to settle issues around childcare and finances Read more…
One in 7 people in the UK needs expert advice to deal with the money they owe. That’s 8 million people who need help paying their mortgage, council tax, and utility bills. Half of this group are aged between 18 and 34, and three-quarters of them earn less than £30,000 Read more…
The latest divorce statistics for England and Wales are now out. The highlights are: 2022 saw a 29% decrease in divorces compared with the year before. This is the lowest number since 1971. The average length of heterosexual marriages was 13 years. Gay marriages lasted just 7 years. For lesbian Read more…
The National Audit Office has published a report on the legal aid system. It found that: The Ministry of Justice can not say how much money was saved in recent reforms The reforms are not providing the level of access to justice that they intended Diversion to mediation has failed Read more…
A new study suggests that women find it harder than men to adjust emotionally to the breakdown of a relationship later in life. The research looked at 200,000 people aged 50 to 70 in Finland. While both sexes increased their use of anti-depressants in the run-up to and immediately after Read more…