CAFCASS has published its strategy for 2026 – 2029. It is not a new Act of Parliament and it does not rewrite the Family Procedure Rules. But its commitment to hearing children earlier, strengthening safeguarding, reducing delay and improving consistency could mark an important change in private children proceedings. It is a welcome move forward, but only if one principle runs through every case: Evidence must come before presumption. The Family Court cannot safely operate on

We need to talk about the victims that nobody wants to talk about. Domestic abuse is not exclusively a women’s issue. Men can be victims. Women can be perpetrators. Children can become victims too. The latest ONS figures for England and Wales estimate that 1.5 million men experienced domestic abuse in the year ending March 2025, alongside 2.2 million women. Overall, around 3.8 million adults experienced domestic abuse. The Crime Survey - Domestic abuse victim characteristi

Dear United Nations, I am writing to call for greater international recognition of the importance of evidence-based family justice systems that place children’s rights, safety and welfare at the centre of every decision. When families separate, children can experience some of the most difficult and uncertain periods of their lives. Separation can involve disputes about living arrangements, parental relationships, safeguarding concerns, domestic abuse, coercive control, econom

A child’s safety should never depend on assumptions, competing narratives or a system that identifies risk only after harm has occurred. Every time a child is harmed during court-ordered contact with an unsafe parent, society is left asking the same question: Why was contact prioritised over safety? This is not about one parent, one family or one individual decision. It is about whether our family justice system has the right processes to identify risk, understand complex fam

It’s Time to Follow the Money The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) was created to ensure that children receive financial support from both parents after separation. That principle is one that almost everyone agrees with. So why are some children still growing up in financial hardship while parents with far greater financial means can, in some cases, be assessed on a declared income of just £12,570 ? The answer is uncomfortable. The current Child Maintenance Service largely rel

I fully support Claire Waxman OBE’s call for victims’ voices to remain central when decisions are made about the justice system. The pressures facing the prison system are real, but so are the rights, safety, and confidence of victims and survivors. Promises made to victims must be delivered. A justice system cannot maintain public trust if those who have experienced harm do not feel heard, protected, or recognised. The same principle must apply within the family justice syst