To: The Lord Chancellor & Secretary of State for Justice and The President of the Family Division (Head of Family Courts)
Make Family Court Safe and Fair for Women and Children
Women and children must be protected from financial harm, coercion, and disbelief in family court.
Why is this important?
The solution is clear and achievable:
1. Expand legal aid for financially vulnerable parents -
No mother should lose her home, savings, or stability because she cannot afford representation.
2. Introduce mandatory safeguarding checks when children disclose harm
Children’s statements must be taken seriously = Courts should not dismiss disclosures simply because they come from the parent with less financial power.
3. Require full and transparent financial disclosure from both parties -
No mother should lose her home, savings, or stability because she cannot afford representation.
2. Introduce mandatory safeguarding checks when children disclose harm
Children’s statements must be taken seriously = Courts should not dismiss disclosures simply because they come from the parent with less financial power.
3. Require full and transparent financial disclosure from both parties -
No parent should be able to hide income, savings, or affordability.
4. Create a “Vulnerable Litigant Protection Pathway” -
A simple, fast process that gives vulnerable parents:
support
guidance
representation
protection from coercion
5. Commission an urgent review into how family courts handle financial imbalance and children’s disclosures -
support
guidance
representation
protection from coercion
5. Commission an urgent review into how family courts handle financial imbalance and children’s disclosures -
We need accountability, data, and reform.
I’m Tracy, a mum from Wales, and I’m speaking up because the family court system has left me — and thousands of other women — financially devastated, unheard, and unprotected.
After giving birth, I expected life to be hard, but I never imagined the real trauma would come later, inside a system that is supposed to protect families. When my relationship ended, I entered family court without the money to hire a solicitor. That single fact changed everything. I lost my home, my savings, my pension rights, and my financial stability — not because I was irresponsible, but because I simply couldn’t afford representation while the other parent could. The financial imbalance meant my voice carried less weight. My evidence was harder to present. My concerns were easier to dismiss. Even when children speak up about harm, courts often minimise or overlook their disclosures if the parent raising concerns is the one with fewer resources. This isn’t just my experience — it’s happening to women across the UK.
Family court is meant to protect children and support parents, but right now it is failing the very people who need it most. Women who cannot afford legal help are losing everything: their homes, their financial security, and sometimes even their ability to protect their children. No mother should be punished for being financially vulnerable. No child’s voice should be ignored because one parent has more money.
Family court is meant to protect children and support parents, but right now it is failing the very people who need it most. Women who cannot afford legal help are losing everything: their homes, their financial security, and sometimes even their ability to protect their children. No mother should be punished for being financially vulnerable. No child’s voice should be ignored because one parent has more money.
I’m sharing my story because this isn’t just about me. It’s about every woman who has been financially overpowered, every child whose words were brushed aside, and every family who has been harmed by a system that does not recognise financial inequality as a safeguarding risk.
We need change. We need protection. We need fairness. And we need it now.
We need change. We need protection. We need fairness. And we need it now.
The financial imbalance meant my voice carried less
