HMCTS, the official body overseeing the law courts for England and Wales has invited service users to give feedback about the organisation and its reform programme in a survey published yesterday. Respondents can also give specific feedback about the family courts.
This site completed the survey and invited HMCTS to incorporate family court service users’ experiences and advice into their reform programme. User engagement was a central theme running through all of our answers. The survey can also be answered by legal professionals.
There are over 25 questions, some of which ask for personal information about respondents completing the survey – these questions don’t have to be answered.
Interesting questions inside the survey include queries about trust levels around HMCTS and which news outlets respondents feel offer impartial, trustworthy updates about the court system. While the survey is an effort at gauging the organisation’s success, it also reads like an evaluation of its new head Susan Acland-Hood, who was brought in to try to improve the court system.
We’ve added the main questions below so you can get a feel for the survey. (Some of the potential answers offered may not show up in full).
You can take the survey here. Deadline for submissions is 10th May, 2019.
Researching Reform 
Pingback: Parents Invited To Give Feedback on Family Courts – HM Courts & Tribunals — Researching Reform | L8in
i have had a bias judge and i believe my ex is freinds with mediator, 6 court dates over last year and nothing done.3 in one yea judge was out for last 3 judge heard other cases during my time and nothing done. i have to travel two states away at this point, as my job transferred me. games being playd and no contact from my daughter, as she is on my ex phone plan and he has parental controls. i have a attorney who will not respond…. is there no help
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The family courts, where children are trafficked from loving families. The government say 73% of children looked after In care are because of abuse or neglect. Well less then a handful are actually convicted of abuse or neglect to a child. So how do they get that figure. The family courts are fully aware that the local councils each have targets for fostering and adoption for financial profits and the family courts cash in on this when cases get to court. The family courts are breaching human rights every day. but yet say they are not, the local councils and those private foster and adoption companies that make millions of pounds in profit. Look up the palemora agreement United Nations convention of human rights. Then look at the facts that the family courts ignore all human rights by passing sentences like forstering or adoption of a child if no crime has been committed. Can not pass sentence without evidence of any wrong doing, thu do however pass sentence on possible future risk. Something no person can get conviction for. They pass sentence without a jury of your peers, they are secret and we know why not to protect families or children but to protect themselves. I’ll give you an example of what I’m on about. My daughter was adopted from me, no charges ever brought against me, no crimes ever commuted, yet the local authorities have targets for fostering and adoption and they said I’m a risk because I was in care myself. The courts said in their final reasons that the local authorities failed me as a child but still will take my daughter for adoption. It’s child trafficking and the family courts, locals councils, private companies in fostering and adoption an even the government are breakImg international laws, uk laws and breaching individual human rights.
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Completed!
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Completed! But this isn’t about Family Courts specifically, and it is based on the HMTC as an overall organisation rather on any issues of law or procedures within the actual courts.
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Hi MeMe, we make those points in the post xxx
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Yes, I appreciate that Natasha, just verifying the experience, but still worth doing! 😀 😀 😀 xx
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The family court setting is prehistoric and in chaos, they are unregulated and causing deep pain in families across the country.
The Judge who represented me around child contact threatened me with prison and community service and referred to me as the girl who cried wolf. He had firm evidence of my ex-husbands history, police reports, social services evidence, children’s wishes and feelings, school reports and chose to stick to a framework that guaranteed access to his children, when their own wishes and feelings were ignored.
Upon the first contact I was expected to hand the children over to a man with a vengeful nature and a full history of abuse, intent on creating total intimidation. My friends offered to carry out the first contact as we were all in agreement I was terrified of him, and he would subject me to a torrent onslaught of mistreatment, so we loaded my children into their car, a 6 month old baby daughter who he had seen on a few occasions, [edited] begging not to go, and a fear that if I wasn’t to promote this, I would serve time in prison.
When my ex-husband observed I was not on the child hand over, he flew into unimaginable rage. He aggressively ripped [edited] out of her car seat and [edited] began to hyperventilate. Police were involved. My friends were traumatised. The School observed how the children became so ill. The School revealed the children were crying deeply about their distress and the boys became riddled with heightened anxiety.
The court cracked on regardless and shared to me that I was responsible for the breakdown and instead I should carry out future contact under surveillance! When I diplomatically challenged his barbaric, imbalanced and inequitable approach and desperately shared I would be discussing this with my local MP. Judge [edited] affirmed to me that MPs carry no power and with my team of domestic abuse support workers, we promptly forwarded a complaint about his misunderstanding to this case.
The response from the commission’s board was that it is a Judges court room and they are in control of their decisions. How on earth can this arena be unregulated?
Power corrupts inevitably with this dynamic. It is corrupting each day. There is a solution to this unwarranted methodology and that is regulation and reform.
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Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Even in the 21st century, women and children as still considered to be the chattals of men, and might is right…. Not a lot of any significance has changed over the millenia, except the illusion that there has been change. Women still don’t have equal opportuntiy or equal pay, or equal rights in 99% of areas of life. I am much heartened by how many mothers who have been abused and traumatised, and who have suffered further abuse, trauma, bullying and coercive control at the hands of SS and the judiciary, are now studying for law degrees themselves. In many instances it is too late for our children, but not for their children or further future generations. Like with the Extinction Rebellion movement, there is groundswell of grass roots people committed to making change happen for the sake of the children in FC. And as for the social workers, solicitors and judges guilty of perverting the true course of justice.. see how far that power gets you when you stand in the court of final judgement on the other side and try to explain why you hurt and oppressed the children, the weak and the vulnerable when your job was to protect them and uphold justice for them. Don’t expect your souls to rest in peace.
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From the start I have been treated appallingly by the social services & not even been heard properly at the courts, the courts had failed miserably & not done what caffcass had recommended, they had not carried out a fact finding report. I have no criminal record, I have not ever been questioned for anything inappropriate. My husband has been interviewed by the police for inappropriate behaviour towards his first step daughter, but because of lack of evidence he has unfortunately escaped justice, he has since the made worrying inappropriate degrading perverted sexual comments about my oldest daughter when she was 15yrs old, I had to take her back home for her own safety. Both of my older children have been estranged from my life because of the lies my husband had told them & me & the police. Both of my daughter’s have tried self harming because of him. I truly believe that he has done something to my oldest daughter & I am worried sick about my youngest daughter who is now 10yrs old & soon going to grow into a young teenage girl, she is “hAT RISK”, I know my husband inside out, no social worker would ever know what sort of monster he is because he is very devious & manipulative & knows how to make the victims look like they are unstable. I was in an abusive relationship & I’ve been out of it now for for nearly 16months, he had made me homeless for 8 months but I have my own place now. The court order that had stated I was allowed supervised contact has been broken by the woman who was suppose to take charge of that, her conduct became very unprofessional & she had started involving herself in mine & my husbands behaviour. I have now got a new solicitor & am not ever going to stop fighting for my daughter, her life, her safety, her wellbeing & her emotional state. I have not seen her since October 3rd 2018, there is so much more. But I will get my little daughter back .
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It should be made easier for parents of adult children who lack capacity to get the right to act for their children on health and welfare into adulthood
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I left an abusive relationship 3 years ago following a period of domestic violence during which my ex-husband assaulted me and tried to set fire to the family home.
On the recommendation of social services I left the relationship as it was in the best interests of the children, therefore giving up my marriage, my home, changing the children’s school and started our life over again.
However, my ex-husband then embarked on a campaign through the family court to gain access to the children. After a period of supervised access he was allowed an overnight stay and then a parenting order was drawn up. However, this was not to the satisfaction of the children’s father and he has taken me to court numerous times for new court orders and amendments. But more worryingly is the constant threat of court action, through emails and texts and also through the children who are under relentless pressure to stay with father and increase contact with him.
I feel the family court is effectively involved in the ongoing abuse from my ex-husband. The threat of, and eventual court action, is used as a weapon by my ex-husband. It is a form of harassment and control. After 3 years separation I am still caught up in these threats despite all efforts to move on. I have written directly to the court and government ministers to try and stop his behaviour. I have to be allowed to move on with my life and I’ve asked the court directly how many times legal action can be taken against me like this. To date I’ve had one response, that my letter will be considered should he try and take court action again.
As a victim of domestic violence I feel unsupported by the family court. My ongoing abuse is not a consideration, in fact I’ve been told to ‘put it behind me’ despite concerns about my children’s welfare while they are with my ex-partner. The children have never been asked by the court about their needs and wishes. In fact, I found after I left the abusive relationship that a dad has a considerable amount of rights despite the abuse. There also seems to be no mechanism within the family court system to stop repeated court action and the court is being used to continue abuse.
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‘Put it behind you’??!! The speaks the voice of judical ignorance. We can walk away from DV, and pout the relationship behinds us, but it NEVER EVER LEAVES YOU. It’s with you for life. The symptoms of PTSD you have to live with, the nightmares even years later… And, as you point out, the ongoing use of both the children and the court by vicious controlling psychopaths to continue to abuse both you and the children……. because THEY CANNOT MOVE ON, because they cannot put it behind them, they cannot come to terms with the fact you got away from them, and you took the kids. That losss of control over you and the kids is twisting their bowels into knots of hate every day and boy are they going to try and get even with you, even if they have to spend the rest of their life doing it! The have no feelings for their kids, only for themselves and they are happy to let the kids be ‘collateral damage’ in tehir war against you, because to them it’s all about REVENGE. And they will groom and manipulate and lie to anyone and everyone to try and achieve their revenge.
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Oh and consider going and getting a non Molestation Order against him with a power of arrest, one which protects you and the kids with specifics of what he can and can’t do, such as handover of teh kids must be between you and his parents/sbrother/sister if they are reasonable ppl. Speak to your solicitor about it. Although you don’t need a solicitor to apply for one.. for example it can also stop him from contacting you in any way including by emails and texts etc, and it can specify that he ahs to contact you through a solicitor or his parents can contact you on his behalf.
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I witnessed solicitors chit chatting in public stating what was about to happen once they got before the judge. These were solicitors from both sides of the argument colluding to have my granddaughter removed from her mother, my daughter. She is a perfect well cared for and much loved child and was dragged away from our family by social workers to be placed with someone who is no blood relation. The trauma she suffered was terrifying to watch.
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