Important – Campaigns Disagree With Each Other
There is no single family-court reform movement.
Some campaigns call for stronger presumptions of shared parenting and parental involvement.
Others want the existing presumption of parental involvement removed or substantially changed because of concerns about domestic abuse and child safety.
There are also opposing campaigns about the concept of “parental alienation”.
This directory lists different positions so readers can examine the evidence and arguments themselves.
Listing a campaign does not mean Right First Time UK endorses every claim, policy or statement made by that campaign.
Family Court Transparency
Understanding the Family Court; Protecting Families
Right First Time UK wants parents and family members to have easier access to information explaining how Family Court proceedings work, what information is being used and what their rights are.
The campaign supports greater openness while maintaining strict protections for children and vulnerable family members.
Openness in the Family Court: What You Need to Know
Family Court reporting in England and Wales has become more open through arrangements allowing accredited journalists and authorised legal bloggers to attend and report from qualifying proceedings.
Where reporting is allowed, a Transparency Order sets out what information can and cannot be reported.
Protected information can include:
- Children's names
- Home addresses
- Schools
- Dates of birth
- Photographs
- Information that could identify a child
Judges retain control over reporting within individual proceedings and can alter restrictions where necessary.
Families should be able to:
- Ask what a Transparency Order means
- Understand who can report
- Raise privacy concerns with the court
- Receive clear explanations about restrictions
A Transparency Order does not automatically give parents or members of the public permission to publish information from their case.
Family Court confidentiality rules still apply.
Key Changes Right First Time UK Wants to See
- Family Court reporting should continue becoming more open and transparent.
- Children's identities and sensitive family information must remain protected.
- Transparency Orders should clearly explain what can and cannot be reported.
- Judges should carefully balance openness with the welfare and privacy of families.
- Families should be able to ask questions and understand their rights throughout proceedings.
- Court administration should be accountable where information or documents properly sent to court are not correctly processed or placed before the court.
- Evidence and documents sent in accordance with court directions should be properly compiled and available to the judge.
- There should be effective accountability and review where decisions are alleged to have caused serious avoidable harm to children or family relationships, while preserving judicial independence and the proper appeal process.
- The court should properly consider relevant evidence admitted or directed for consideration, rather than important material being lost through administrative or procedural failures.
Why Family Court Campaigning Is Growing
Different campaigns disagree about the causes and solutions, but official statistics and reports show substantial pressure on the family justice system.
270,474 New Cases in 2025
Official Family Court statistics recorded 270,474 new family cases in England and Wales during 2025.
That was approximately 3% higher than 2024.
Private-law cases increased by around 7%, domestic-violence cases by around 4%, and public-law cases by around 2%.
Family Justice Delays
The National Audit Office and Parliament have warned that children and families are waiting too long for cases to be resolved.
By December 2024 there were tens of thousands of outstanding children-related Family Court cases.
Parliament later highlighted that more than 4,000 children were involved in cases that had been open for over 100 weeks.
2026 Pressure Continues
Family Court statistics for January to March 2026 recorded more than 71,000 new family cases.
Private-law case starts were substantially higher than the same quarter a year earlier.
Mean completion time was around 35 weeks in private-law children cases and around 37 weeks in public-law cases during that quarter.
Cafcass Caseload
At the end of July 2026 Cafcass recorded:
- 29,228 open children's cases
- 46,750 children involved
- 17,413 open private-law cases
- 26,449 children in those private-law cases
Open private-law cases remained substantially higher than a year earlier.
Domestic Abuse & Family Court Campaign Pressure
A major 2025 review commissioned by the Domestic Abuse Commissioner described domestic abuse as “everyday business” in the Family Court.
The research examined court files, hearings and the experiences of survivors and professionals.
Campaigners use the report to argue for stronger:
- Recognition of coercive control
- Child safeguarding
- Trauma-informed practice
- Data collection
- Monitoring of outcomes
- Accountability
- Support for survivors during proceedings
Official Reform Programmes Campaigners Are Responding To
They are included because many of the campaigns and petitions below either support, oppose or want changes to these programmes.
Child Focused Courts
The Private Law Pathfinder approach has been renamed Child Focused Courts and is being expanded across England and Wales.
The model aims to:
- Gather safeguarding information earlier
- Hear children's voices earlier
- Reduce repeat hearings
- Identify domestic abuse and risk sooner
- Provide specialist support
- Resolve cases more quickly
Government research reported that cases in pilot areas were resolved around 7.5 months faster on average.
Open Reporting & Transparency Orders
Family Court reporting arrangements in England and Wales have been expanded nationally.
Accredited journalists and authorised legal bloggers may report from qualifying proceedings subject to a Transparency Order and anonymity protections.
Parental Involvement Presumption
The Government announced proposals in March 2026 to repeal the statutory presumption of parental involvement in certain Children Act proceedings through the Courts and Tribunals Bill.
Supporters argue the change would strengthen child safety in cases involving abuse.
Opposing campaigns argue removing the presumption could make it easier for children to unnecessarily lose meaningful relationships with a parent.
Family Justice Young People's Board
The Family Justice Young People's Board works with Cafcass and family-justice organisations to ensure the experiences and views of children and young people influence policy and practice.
Its 2026 Voice of the Child conference focused on:
“Knowing our rights, growing up safe and happy.”
Transparency, Accountability & Public Scrutiny Campaigns
The Transparency Project
The Transparency Project works to:
- Make family justice clearer
- Explain judgments and court processes
- Promote accurate reporting
- Support legal blogging
- Monitor Open Reporting
- Improve public understanding of family justice
It regularly reports from Family Courts under the modern transparency arrangements.
LOVE V LAW
LOVE V LAW describes itself as a film and social-impact movement focused on alleged failures within the family justice system.
The campaign aims to:
- Amplify experiences of families affected by proceedings
- Increase transparency
- Push for family-justice reform
- Campaign for stronger accountability
- Improve safeguarding
- Challenge delays and repeated litigation
- Call for reform of Cafcass and social-care practice
Some of the project's claims are strongly contested and represent the campaign's own position rather than findings established by an independent public inquiry.
Family Court Crisis
Family Court Crisis describes itself as a collective of families campaigning for justice.
It campaigns around:
- Accountability
- Transparency
- Children's safety
- Human rights
- Family participation in reform
- Public awareness
Claims published by the organisation should be read as its campaign position rather than independent findings of fact.
Close the Gap Family Courts UK
Close the Gap Family Courts UK campaigns for stronger links between:
- Family Courts
- Social care
- Police
- Domestic-abuse services
- Frontline professionals
Its current priorities include:
- Full multi-agency checks
- Better information sharing
- Trauma-informed practice
- Independent review processes
- Improved accuracy in professional reports
- Accountability
It is currently supporting petitions calling for a public inquiry and a pause to the national Pathfinder / Child Focused Courts rollout.
Domestic Abuse, Child Safety & Survivor Campaigns
Support Not Separation
Support Not Separation describes itself as:
A coalition to end unwarranted and damaging separation of children from their mothers or other primary carers.
Campaigning has included:
- Family Court transparency
- Ending the presumption of parental involvement/contact
- Domestic-abuse safeguarding
- Opposition to contested uses of “parental alienation”
- Keeping families together
- Opposition to unnecessary child removal
- Monthly Family Court protests
Disabled Mothers' Rights Campaign
The Disabled Mothers' Rights Campaign is coordinated by WinVisible.
It campaigns against what members describe as discrimination affecting disabled mothers in:
- Children's social care
- Family Courts
- Maternity services
- Care and support assessments
Its campaign calls for:
- Support to keep families together
- Better recognition of disabled parents' rights
- Action against disability discrimination
- Accessible support services
SHERA Research Group
SHERA brings together researchers and advocates working across:
- Domestic abuse
- Health
- Law
- Human rights
- Social care
- Family Courts
Its Family Court work investigates the health impacts of domestic abuse and legal proceedings on women and children.
It also publishes resources for professionals, policymakers and victim-survivors.
#thecourtsaid
#thecourtsaid grew as a survivor-led campaign sharing experiences of domestic abuse and Family Court proceedings.
It has pushed for:
- Survivor voices to be heard
- Greater transparency
- Recognition of post-separation abuse
- Safer child-contact decision making
- Reform of Family Court practice
Centre for Women's Justice – Campaign Network
The Centre for Women's Justice supports and works with campaigns focused on improving legal responses to violence against women.
Its campaign network includes work on:
- Domestic abuse
- Coercive control
- Legal accountability
- Family Court-related concerns
- Protection for survivors
Claire Throssell – Family Court Safety Reform
Claire Throssell has campaigned for years for reforms following the deaths of her children Jack and Paul.
Her campaigning has focused on:
- Putting child safety before automatic assumptions about parental contact
- Improved recognition of domestic abuse
- Safer Family Court decisions
- Greater accountability
Government announcements in 2026 directly referenced her campaign when proposing changes to the statutory presumption of parental involvement.
Shared Parenting, Parent-Child Relationships & Father's Rights Campaigns
Voice of the Child – Family Law Research
Voice of the Child researches family law and argues that the long-term welfare of children should remain central to family justice.
Its stated beliefs include:
- Children's wishes and feelings should be heard
- Children's welfare should remain paramount
- Co-parenting should normally be encouraged after separation
- Parents should receive earlier support to agree arrangements
- Family Court litigation should be a last resort where possible
- Cafcass and court practice should be publicly scrutinised
- Family law should be evidence-based and gender-neutral
Both Parents Matter
Both Parents Matter campaigns for children to maintain meaningful relationships with both parents and wider family where safe and appropriate after separation.
Campaign issues include:
- Shared parenting
- Family Court reform
- Children maintaining relationships with both parents
- Enforcement of court orders
- Recognition of alienating behaviours
- Separated-parent mental health
- Child maintenance reform
Fathers Rights UK
Fathers Rights UK is a campaign and information platform supporting fathers navigating separation, contact disputes and Family Court proceedings.
Its campaign objectives include:
- Shared parenting
- Equal parental status
- Greater Family Court transparency
- Stronger enforcement of Child Arrangements Orders
- Raising awareness of parental alienation
- Supporting father-child relationships
These are campaign positions and do not represent the current legal starting point in every Family Court case.
Fathers4Justice
Fathers4Justice is a long-running campaign focused on fathers' and children's relationships following family separation.
Its campaigning has historically focused on:
- Shared parenting
- Family law reform
- Public awareness
- Family Court accountability
- Parental equality
Reform Family Justice UK
Reform Family Justice UK campaigns to amplify the experiences of non-resident parents who say they face:
- Loss of relationships with children
- Financial barriers to legal advice
- Difficulties navigating Family Court proceedings
- Concerns about alienation
- Child-maintenance and enforcement pressures
Its stated aim is to:
“Speak truth to power.”
Legal Aid & Access to Justice Campaigns
Law Society – Legal Aid Means
The Law Society's current:
Legal Aid Means – Hope. Support. Family.
campaign calls for urgent investment in family legal aid.
It argues that better family legal aid would mean:
- More domestic-abuse survivors can obtain legal advice
- Fewer people are forced to represent themselves
- Families receive earlier legal advice
- Some disputes can be resolved before reaching court
- Children receive better-supported outcomes
Family Rights Group
Family Rights Group campaigns across England, Scotland and Wales to improve child welfare and family justice.
Current campaigning includes:
- Reforming legal aid
- Early legal advice
- Keeping children safely within family networks
- Kinship care
- Better pre-proceedings practice
- Domestic-abuse and child-welfare reform
- Access to justice where children are deprived of liberty
- Giving families a stronger voice in policy
Kinship – Family Justice & Legal Aid
Kinship campaigns for relatives and family friends caring for children who cannot live with their parents.
Its family-justice campaigning includes:
- Better legal advice
- Legal-aid reform
- Fairer support for kinship carers
- Clearer legal orders
- Improved recognition of kinship families
Scotland – Family Justice Campaigns
Shared Parenting Scotland
Shared Parenting Scotland campaigns to improve how separated families are supported and how Scottish family law deals with parenting.
Its 2026 campaign priorities included:
- A renewed Parenting Strategy for Scotland
- An independent commission on the Voice of the Child and Best Interests of the Child
- Removing disincentives to shared parenting
- Reform of Family Courts and professional practice
- Changing language and culture around separated parenting
It also campaigns for alternatives to adversarial Family Court proceedings.
PE2241 – Legal Services Payment Orders
This Scottish Parliament petition calls for Legal Services Payment Orders in Scottish family law.
The proposal aims to stop economic or financial control preventing a party from obtaining:
- Legal advice
- Representation
- Fair participation in family proceedings
The petition was taken under consideration from 4 August 2026.
PE2238 – Parental Rights After Abuse Convictions
This petition asks the Scottish Government to automatically remove parental rights from people convicted of specified child sexual or domestic-abuse offences, with reconsideration possible through a later application.
The petition was taken under consideration from 29 July 2026.
Wales – Campaigns & Reform Pressure
Many England-and-Wales family justice campaigns apply to Wales too, including:
- Child Focused Courts
- Family Court transparency
- Legal-aid campaigns
- Domestic-abuse Family Court reform
- Children's participation campaigns
Welsh Women's Aid – Family Justice Advocacy
Welsh Women's Aid campaigns to improve policy, practice and services for survivors across Wales.
Its Family Court advocacy has called for:
- Safer responses to domestic abuse
- Implementation of recommendations from Family Court reviews
- Better professional training
- Survivor voices to shape justice policy
- Improved Cafcass Cymru responses
- Safer child-contact arrangements
Its campaigning page currently records previous campaigns rather than listing a specific new Family Court campaign, but Family Court reform remains part of its wider justice-policy work.
North Wales Pathfinder / Child Focused Courts
North Wales was one of the original Pathfinder areas.
Campaigners and domestic-abuse organisations have watched the project closely because it places greater emphasis on:
- Early information gathering
- Children's voices
- Domestic-abuse support
- Earlier safeguarding
- Reduced adversarial hearings
Northern Ireland – Family Court Reform Campaigning
“Totally Invisible” – Reform Pressure
Research commissioned by the Commissioner for Victims of Crime Northern Ireland examined the experiences of domestic-abuse survivors and children in private-law Family Court proceedings.
The report:
“Totally Invisible”
calls for significant reform and greater focus on:
- Trauma-informed proceedings
- Children's participation
- Recognition of coercive control
- Domestic-abuse safeguarding
- Victim support
- Reducing harmful delays
The Northern Ireland Justice Committee has since examined the report and government departments have been considering reform options.
Move Toward a New Family Court Model
Following the Totally Invisible report, Northern Ireland bodies have been considering the feasibility of a different Family Court model.
The proposed direction includes:
- Greater child participation
- Trauma-informed processes
- Multi-agency working
- Improved domestic-abuse responses
- Better support for survivors
Live Petition Directory
The petitions below are created by members of the public.
The wording and claims belong to the petition creators. Listing them here does not mean Right First Time UK or this page has verified or endorsed those claims.
Some petitions make opposing requests.
Signature numbers change continuously, so this page focuses on the petition request and closing date rather than displaying a fixed signature count.
Live UK Parliament Family Court Petitions
Abolish Cafcass and Replace It
Calls for Cafcass to be abolished and replaced with a different system for representing and safeguarding children in family proceedings.
Closes: 31 January 2027
Review the Effects of Parental Alienation on Families
Calls for a government review examining the scale and effects of what the petition describes as parental alienation and how courts and services respond.
Closes: 26 November 2026
Review Legal & Social Care Use of “Parental Alienation”
This petition takes a substantially different position.
It asks for a review of cases where parental-alienation concepts have been used and calls for these concepts to stop being used in courts, investigations and social-work practice.
Closes: 6 February 2027
Recognition of Primary Caregiver
Calls for recognition of a child's primary caregiver to be mandated in Family Court decisions.
Closes: 6 September 2026
Protections Against Coercive Control in Family Court
Calls for a review of protections available to children where coercive control is raised during Family Court proceedings.
Closes: 29 November 2026
Require Fact-Finding in Domestic Abuse Family Court Cases
Calls for all Family Court cases involving allegations of domestic abuse or coercive control to include a fact-finding hearing.
Closes: 18 December 2026
Independent Inquiry Into Family Court Handling of Domestic Abuse
Calls for an independent inquiry examining Family Court decisions and practice in cases involving domestic abuse.
The petition also calls for specialist training.
Closes: 10 December 2026
Pause the Pathfinder / Child Focused Courts Rollout
Calls for the national rollout to be paused while an independent public inquiry examines the model.
This petition directly challenges the Government's current expansion programme.
Closes: 8 December 2026
Remove Parental Responsibility After Abuse Convictions
Calls for parental responsibility to be automatically removed from parents convicted of specified abuse.
Closes: 11 September 2026
Make Parental Responsibility Enforceable
Calls for the Children Act to define enforceable financial and practical duties attached to parental responsibility.
Closes: 30 January 2027
Review Parental Rights Where Care Is Not 50/50
Calls for parental rights to be reviewed where one parent does not participate equally in raising the child.
Closes: 15 October 2026
Mandatory Domestic Violence Training
Calls for accredited domestic-abuse, coercive-control and trauma-informed training to be mandatory for Family Court and social-work professionals.
Closes: 11 February 2027
Change the Family Court Burden of Proof
Calls for family-law proceedings to use the criminal “beyond reasonable doubt” standard.
This is the petitioner's proposed change. The current Family Court standard for findings of fact is generally the civil standard: balance of probabilities.
Closes: 14 November 2026
Financial Support for Court-Ordered Drug & Alcohol Testing
Calls for financial help with testing ordered in Family Court cases.
Closes: 26 November 2026
Caseworker for Every Domestic Abuse Victim
Calls for funded assignment of a dedicated caseworker to every domestic-abuse victim navigating relevant services and proceedings.
Closes: 24 September 2026
Keep Children With Families Through Earlier Support
Calls for a review of how public services can provide earlier and better-funded help to keep children safely with their families.
Closes: 30 September 2026
Post-Separation Domestic Abuse Protections
Calls for a review of how survivors are protected from continued abuse following separation.
Closes: 22 December 2026
Review “Risk of Harm” Decisions Under the Children Act
Calls for review of how risk-of-harm decisions are reached in Children Act proceedings.
Closes: 9 October 2026
Audio Recordings of Supervised Contact Sessions
Calls for supervised child-contact sessions used in Family Court proceedings to be audio recorded.
Closes: 15 December 2026
Costs Awards for Proven False Evidence
Calls for a review of costs orders where evidence in Family Court proceedings is proven to have been false.
Closes: 20 November 2026
Check for New Petitions
New petitions can be published after this page is updated.
Recent Family Court Petition Campaigns – Now Closed
These campaigns are retained because they show recent public pressure for reform.
Public Inquiry on Safeguarding & Family Court Training
Called for a public inquiry examining safeguarding and professional training within Family Courts.
Prevent Post-Separation Abuse Through Family Court Reform
Called for a review of the Family Court system to help prevent post-separation abuse.
Public Inquiry Into the Work of Family Courts
Called for a public inquiry into Family Court operation.
Although the petition closed, Family Court performance later became the subject of further parliamentary scrutiny.
Presumption of Equal Parenting Time
Called for a legal presumption of equal parenting time after separation.
Make Parental Alienation a Criminal Offence
Called for parental alienation to become a criminal offence.
This remains a contested issue and is different from the approach taken by some child-safety and domestic-abuse campaigners.
Review Hearings for Child Arrangements Orders
Called for review hearings to be required following Child Arrangements Orders.
Scottish Family Justice Petition History
PE2163 – Child Contact & Domestic Abuse
Called for guidance dealing with the interaction between child-contact disputes and Scotland's domestic-abuse legislation.
PE2166 – Standard Family Court Timescales
Called for standardised timeframes for Scottish civil proceedings involving child custody, including much faster proof hearings.
Family Court Is Failing Families
What the Data Says About the Pressure on the System
Britain’s family justice systems are intended to protect children, support families and resolve some of the most difficult disputes people ever experience.
Right First Time UK believes the evidence shows that the system is not working well enough for many of the families who depend on it.
1. Long Delays and Backlogs
Campaign concerns include:
- Children remaining in uncertainty
- Long periods without settled contact arrangements
- Domestic-abuse cases taking too long
- Mounting legal costs
- Emotional harm during prolonged disputes
2. Domestic Abuse Not Always Properly Handled
Campaigners and survivor organisations report concerns about:
- Coercive control being misunderstood
- Survivors feeling disbelieved
- Inconsistent safeguarding
- Post-separation abuse through repeated proceedings
- Children's experiences not receiving sufficient weight
3. Too Many People Represent Themselves
The Law Society reported that in 2025 both parties were unrepresented in around 47% of private family-law cases.
Campaigners argue this can create:
- Confusion about procedure
- Inequality where only one party has representation
- Longer hearings
- Difficulty presenting evidence
- Greater stress
4. Transparency & Public Confidence
Public criticism has often described Family Courts as “secret courts”.
The expansion of Open Reporting is intended to increase public understanding while maintaining anonymity for children.
5. Children’s Voices
Campaign concerns include children being affected by decisions without having enough meaningful participation in how those decisions are made.
Child Focused Courts and the Pathfinder approach are partly intended to address this.
6. Poor Data & Accountability
Parliamentary scrutiny has raised concerns about gaps in family-justice data, including information needed to understand:
- Outcomes
- Repeat applications
- Domestic-abuse cases
- Children's experiences
- System performance
7. Rising Demand & Underfunding
Family case volumes remain high while legal aid, Cafcass, court resources and children's services face substantial demand.
What People Are Saying Online
Individual Reddit posts, Facebook posts and campaign stories are personal experiences.
They can show the types of concerns people are raising, but they do not prove how frequently those experiences occur across all Family Court cases.
“Nobody listens until it’s too late”
Some parents and domestic-abuse survivors describe feeling that safeguarding concerns are not believed or acted upon quickly enough.
“Cafcass has too much influence and too little accountability”
A recurring complaint online concerns the influence of Section 7 reports and the difficulty some parents feel they face when challenging information they believe is inaccurate.
“Court orders are meaningless”
Parents from different sides of the debate describe frustration where Child Arrangements Orders are allegedly repeatedly breached and cases return to court.
Domestic Abuse Survivors
Survivor groups frequently argue that proceedings can become another arena for post-separation abuse and that child-contact decisions can underestimate coercive control.
Fathers' Rights Groups
Fathers' rights groups often argue the opposite problem: that fathers can lose meaningful relationships with their children following allegations they say are unsupported or after repeated breaches of contact arrangements.
Different Experiences – Shared Loss of Trust
Although these groups often disagree about why the problems happen, common themes online include:
- Delay
- Distrust
- Emotional exhaustion
- Financial pressure
- Difficulty challenging professional reports
- Confusion about procedure
- Fear that children are being harmed by prolonged proceedings
LOVE V LAW – Family Court Reform Film & Movement
LOVE V LAW describes its project as more than a documentary.
Its stated aim is to:
- Expose what campaigners believe is going wrong
- Give families a public voice
- Raise awareness of emotional and domestic abuse
- Campaign for greater accountability
- Encourage reform
- Challenge secrecy and lack of public understanding
The project's stronger allegations should be understood as the campaign's own claims and perspective.
Justice Leadership & Public Confidence
Public confidence in the justice system is one of the issues underlying many Family Court transparency and accountability campaigns.
Lady Chief Justice Dame Sue Carr – 2 October 2023
Dame Sue Carr became the first woman to hold the office of Lady Chief Justice of England and Wales.
The role includes leadership of the judiciary and responsibility for matters including:
- Judicial leadership
- Judicial independence
- Court modernisation
- Public confidence
- The administration of justice
Family Court Reform – Key News & Evidence Links
Government Reform Announcement
National expansion of the Child Focused Courts approach.
Parliament – Delays & Domestic Abuse
Public Accounts Committee scrutiny of family justice performance, delays and the impact on children.
Law Society – Legal Aid Crisis
Law Society concerns about rising case volumes and reduced access to legal representation.
Family Court Transparency
Official guidance explaining open reporting and Transparency Orders.
Everyday Business
Major review concerning domestic abuse and continuing harm through Family Court proceedings.
National Family Court Statistics
Official Ministry of Justice data on family case volumes, case types, timeliness and outcomes.
Different Campaigns – Some Shared Demands
Faster Decisions
Children should not spend unnecessary months or years waiting for important decisions about their lives.
Better Safeguarding
Domestic abuse, coercive control and genuine risks of harm should be identified early and handled consistently.
Children's Voices
Children should have meaningful opportunities to be heard without being made responsible for choosing between their parents.
Transparency
The public should be able to understand how the system works while children's identities remain protected.
Access to Justice
People should be able to understand proceedings and obtain legal advice where it is needed.
Accountability
Campaigners from different perspectives want clearer routes for correcting factual mistakes, reviewing professional practice and challenging decisions through the proper legal processes.
Better Evidence
Relevant evidence should be properly filed, available and considered in accordance with court rules and directions.
Less Harmful Conflict
Many campaigns want systems that reduce rather than intensify long-term parental conflict.
Families Are Asking for Change
Survivors of abuse are asking for safety.
Separated parents are asking to remain part of their children's lives.
Children's organisations are asking for children's voices to be heard.
Lawyers are warning about access to justice.
Campaigners are demanding transparency and accountability.
Researchers and Parliament are highlighting delays, data gaps and system pressures.
These groups do not always agree on the answer.
But Family Court reform should begin with a simple principle:
Children and families deserve a system that gets important decisions right, explains what it is doing, acts on reliable evidence and puts children's welfare and safety first.
Right First Time UK
This is a campaign-awareness page, not legal advice.
Campaign organisations and petition creators have different and sometimes directly opposing views about Family Court reform.
Descriptions on this page summarise what those organisations or petition creators say they want. Inclusion does not mean Right First Time UK endorses every claim made.
Where campaign claims are disputed, they have been described as the campaign's position rather than established as fact.
The detailed statistics and most current Family Court reform information on this page relate primarily to England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland operate separate family justice systems.
The Government's proposed repeal of the parental-involvement presumption is described as a proposed reform because a Bill and commencement process determine when any legislative change takes effect.
“Parental alienation” is a contested area. This page deliberately includes petitions and campaigns taking different positions so that one campaign's view is not presented as an established conclusion.
Open Reporting and a Transparency Order do not automatically permit parents or members of the general public to publish information from private Family Court proceedings.
Reddit and social-media discussions are included only as examples of public experiences and concerns. They are anecdotal and should not be treated as representative evidence about every Family Court case.
Petition status and closing dates can change. Readers should open the Parliament page to check the latest status before signing or sharing.
Campaign directory checked: 29 August 2026.