
Despite changes in the legal aid landscape and difficulties encountered by firms that deliver legal aid, Family Matters is one of the decreasing numbers of those firms who can still offer legal aid for mediation services where appropriate.
At present, the legal aid register shows that there are only 92 active mediation contracts and 1,284 outreach locations in England and Wales. In October 2020 those figures were 152 and 1,867 respectively.
Figures from the Family Mediation Council data shows that there are now only 241 mediators delivering legal aid. That’s a drop of 36% since 2020. Family Matters is proud to offer legal aid and has done so since 2000, when it was established, despite a significant increase in the cost of employers’ national insurance, increased complexity in delivery and a major cyber-attack on the Legal Aid Agency.
We are also getting more enquiries from a wider geographical area as people cannot find local providers. It is important to note that if one person qualifies for legal aid, the Legal Aid Agency will pay for both people’s one to one meetings (MIAMS) and a first session of mediation. In child cases, we can apply for the MOJ voucher that awards £500 funding towards the cost of mediations.
The latest Legal Aid Agency quarterly statistics published by the Ministry of Justice, which cover January 2025 to March 2025 showed that despite all these setbacks to legal aid provision, delivery of legal aid for mediation has actually increased. MIAMs are up 7% on the same quarter of 2024, mediation outcomes up 3%, applications for representation supported by domestic or child abuse evidence up by 26% and the proportion of those applications granted up by 19%. The overall proportion of applications granted is 81%, compared with 86% in the previous year.
Juliette Dalrymple, director at Family Matters and family mediator says:
“So many things affect people engaging in mediation. The seasons, the financial outlook, increasing national minimum wage and unchanged qualifying disposable income limits are all leading to less and less people being able to apply for legal aid. It is important to remember that in most cases, being in receipt of universal credit, passports people to mediation and there is legal aid for mediation.”
Contact Family Matters if you want to make an appointment to see a mediator, or read more about Family Matters and legal aid on our webpages. There is also lots of information about family mediation and our mediators on our website.