New research has found that the cost of raising a child for a couple is £166,000, and for a lone parent, it’s £220,000. The COVID pandemic, the cost-of-living crisis, and benefit cuts have left the average working family (two parents working full-time, having two children, and earning the living wage) Read more…
An investigation into providers of online divorces has begun. It follows complaints about unregulated legal services. Online divorce services have grown in popularity since the COVID-19 lockdown. The Competition and Markets Authority will examine misleading claims about the simplicity of the process and the prices being charged. This leaves customers Read more…
The latest trends in living arrangements have just been published. There are 28 million households in the UK, two-thirds of which are just one family. There are 19 million families, and just under half have no children. A similar number have one or more dependent children. Only 15% of families Read more…
Mediation could become mandatory in all suitable family court cases. This means separating couples must try to agree on their child custody and financial arrangements through a Family Mediator. This could also reduce the backlogs in the family courts that have built up due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Couples work Read more…
The proportion of adults in the UK who have never been married or entered into a civil partnership is increasing. In 1991, just over a quarter of adults were single. That is now nearly forty per cent. As of 2021, the number of people in a marriage or civil partnership Read more…
In a recent BBC Radio 4 interview, Sir Andrew McFarlane’s frustration was palpable. This reflected the view of many of his colleagues and family professionals about the number of parents ending up in the court system. In 2020, a report by the Family Solutions Group found the family justice Read more…
The Office for National Statistics has published divorce statistics for last year. There was a 9% increase in divorces granted in England and Wales compared with 2020. However, this could reflect catch-up from the pandemic) Women were more likely to petition in opposite-sex couples than men. (63 per cent versus Read more…
Family law cases are taking longer to resolve than during the Covid restrictions. The government says mediation is the solution, but removing legal aid for most private law family cases means many couples are not even aware it exists. Legal aid cuts have also increased the number of couples without Read more…
The biggest shake-up in divorce law for over 50 years has come into force. These groundbreaking reforms introduce the concept of a “no-fault” divorce. The Divorce, Dissolution, and Separation Act (2020) aims to reduce conflict between separating couples. It means that they will no longer have to apportion blame for Read more…
People don’t decide to end a long-term relationship lightly, especially when children are involved. Divorce and separation are two of the most painful life events anyone ever goes through. They can lead people to question everything they thought they knew about themselves and their lives. They are overwhelming. If this Read more…