Family Court Reporting Watch Consolidation Project

Grant: £40,000
June 20, 2018

Supporting the organisation to develop to reach wider audiences and exploring collaboration, aimed at increasing understanding amongst the public of the family justice system.

Family Court Reporting Watch / Guidance Note Series

Grant: £49,500
June 22, 2016

This project has two strands. Family Court Reporting Watch to monitor official publication/ dissemination, professional reporting and media coverage of family courts and Guidance Notes for parents and professionals working with them.

1. Family Court Reporting Watch. The purpose of this is to monitor official publication/ dissemination, professional reporting and media coverage of family courts and to,
   • Liaise with publishers/ judiciary in cases to alert them to erroneous publication/ anonymisation errors, to highlight mis-reporting or potential breach of privacy/ reporting restrictions
   • Comment on media coverage to correct inaccurate/ misleading reporting.
   • Explain/ interpret difficult or controversial cases for ordinary lay readers including litigants/ families directly impacted by family law.
   • Make official judgments and reliable commentary / explanations of cases available in one location by collecting and linking to them, facilitating the public to self-educate
2. Guidance Notes Series A further development of the existing suite of guidance notes for parents and professionals working with them, providing accessible and neutral explanations of the law on issues which recur in public debate and where the relevant legal framework is poorly misunderstood. Guidance to date covers section 20 Children Act 1989 and the recording of social work meetings by parents (with two more in drafting now). Planned notes include: Moving abroad to avoid child protection investigation/ care proceedings, and Consequences of ignoring an order about a child (working titles).