top of page

The Public Accounts Committee Confirms What We’ve Been Saying: Family Courts Are Broken and Children Are Paying the Price



By Michael Thompson, Founder of the Falsely Accused Network


For years at the Falsely Accused Network, we’ve been listening to men and women who find themselves dragged into the family court system after false allegations. What we hear every day is frustration, despair, and the crushing weight of waiting months or even years just to be heard. Now, the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee has confirmed what we have been saying all along: the family court system in England and Wales is failing children and families on a systemic level.


The Committee’s latest report, Improving Family Court Services for Children (September 2025), lays bare the extent of the crisis. And make no mistake this isn’t just about slow paperwork. Delays mean lost childhoods, broken family bonds, and unnecessary trauma for children and parents alike.




---


Delays Beyond Imagination


One of the most damning findings is the sheer scale of delay. By December 2024, over 4,000 children were caught in cases dragging on for more than 100 weeks. That’s nearly two years of limbo in a child’s life years they will never get back.


The law says public law cases should be finished in 26 weeks. Yet this legal target has never once been met since its introduction in 2014. Instead:


Public law cases (brought by local authorities) average 36 weeks.


Private law cases (disputes between parents) average 41 weeks.



For many of our members, particularly fathers facing false allegations of domestic abuse, this means waiting almost a year before they can even begin to re-establish normal contact with their children. The damage to the parent–child relationship during this time is profound. Children grow older, memories fade, and trust is eroded.



---


A Postcode Lottery of Justice


The report highlights stark regional inequalities. In Wales, public law cases average 24 weeks. In London, the same cases stretch to 53 weeks. For private law, the difference is even worse: 18 weeks in Wales versus 70 weeks in London.


This is nothing short of a postcode lottery of justice. The Committee points to severe shortages of district judges and social workers in London and the South East as a major cause. Without the necessary professionals, cases grind to a halt.


But for families in crisis, explanations don’t matter. All they see is delay and children paying the price.



---


A System Without Accountability


Perhaps the most shocking revelation is that no one is truly accountable for fixing this.


The Family Justice Board (FJB), supposedly the national body overseeing performance, has only met 2.5 times per year on average since 2018. It has no overall strategy, no timelines, and no mechanism to enforce the statutory 26-week limit. Local Family Justice Boards exist but are under-resourced, lack accountability, and vary widely in effectiveness.


This fragmented structure means no single organisation owns the problem — which also means no one can be held responsible when children and families are failed.


At FAN, we see the consequences of this every day. Parents facing false allegations often ask: “Who can I complain to? Who is responsible for fixing this?” And the painful truth is: there is no answer.



---


Inefficiencies and Wasted Time


The Committee found that 32% of public law cases have at least one hearing cancelled on the day. That’s nearly one in three hearings wasting everyone’s time, draining resources, and compounding delays.


Other inefficiencies include:


Repeated expert reports because cases drag on so long that circumstances change.


Litigants in person (self-represented parents) left unable to navigate the system, increasing the burden on judges and staff.


Too many hearings some cases running to eight or more hearings, when the recommended norm is two or three.



For those falsely accused, this means endless adjournments, cancelled hearings, and procedural hurdles while their reputation, mental health, and relationship with their children deteriorate.



---


Data Blindness – Flying Without a Compass


The Committee is clear: the system doesn’t even have the data it needs to understand its own failings.


Key gaps include:


No ability to track a child end-to-end through the system.


No proper data on outcomes for children.


No data on the prevalence of domestic abuse allegations in private law cases.


No joined-up view of the total cost of family justice.



Without data, there can be no proper reform. Yet year after year, the gaps remain. The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill promises a “unique child identifier” to allow proper tracking, but even if passed, it will take years to implement.


For falsely accused parents, this absence of data is especially harmful. If we cannot even measure how many children are separated from safe and loving parents due to false allegations, how can we begin to fix the injustice?



---


Workforce Shortages – The Bottleneck


The report confirms what practitioners have been warning for years: there are simply not enough judges and social workers.


London and the South East are most acutely affected.


HMCTS has promised to recruit 80 new district judges for these areas, but there is no guarantee they will stay, and no clear plan for social work recruitment.


Cafcass continues to struggle with caseloads, leaving many families without timely assessments.



For families already battling the trauma of false allegations, these shortages turn months into years of waiting.


ree

---


Pathfinder Pilots – A Glimpse of Hope, Stuck in Slow Motion


There is one bright spot. The Pathfinder model, trialled in several court areas, has shown:


Earlier information gathering,


Greater involvement of children’s voices,


Fewer court hearings,


Improved support for litigants in person, and


Reduced case durations.



But despite this positive feedback, rollout is painfully slow. Only six areas are using Pathfinder now, with plans for just four more. National adoption could take years — and without investment in Cafcass advisers and social workers, Pathfinder risks being strangled by the very shortages it was designed to overcome.



---


Why This Matters to the Falsely Accused


At FAN, we know these findings are not abstract. They are lived realities:


Fathers waiting over a year to see their children because of allegations later proved false.


Mothers accused of alienation being dragged through endless hearings with no end in sight.


Families bankrupted by legal costs while cases drift on without resolution.



Delays don’t just harm children they also punish the falsely accused twice over: first by the allegation itself, and then by the endless wait for their chance to clear their name.


This is why we fight to empower men and women to navigate the system with support, guidance, and the best legal help they can afford. But as this report shows, the system itself is broken and no amount of personal resilience can change that.



---


The Way Forward – Urgent Reform Needed


The Committee makes strong recommendations:


1. A clear plan, with measurable milestones, to reduce delays.



2. Real accountability structures, nationally and locally.



3. Investment in judges and social workers, especially in London and the South East.



4. Better data collection, including outcomes for children.



5. Full rollout of Pathfinder, with funding for Cafcass and local authorities.



6. Greater support for litigants in person and promotion of out-of-court solutions like mediation.




We agree but words on paper are not enough. The government must act with urgency. Every month of delay is another month of a child’s life lost to bureaucracy.



---


Our Position


The Public Accounts Committee’s report is welcome. It shines a spotlight on failures that those of us inside the system have known for years. But reports don’t change lives action does.


At the Falsely Accused Network, we will continue to:


Support those facing false allegations,


Link them with the best legal and emotional support available,


Speak out against systemic failings, and


Push for reform that puts children’s best interests first.



Children cannot afford to wait. Neither can the falsely accused.



---


Contact us if you need support:

📞 0204 538 8788

 
 
 

Comments

bottom of page