Children and families in Cheshire to benefit from new Child Focused Courts approach

Children and families across Cheshire are set to benefit from a major new approach to family justice designed to reduce delays, improve support for victims of domestic abuse, and ensure children's voices are heard throughout court proceedings.

The Cheshire and Merseyside family court area has been selected as one of the latest areas to introduce the Government's Child Focused Courts programme. The rollout follows successful pilots in 10 areas across England and Wales which saw family court cases resolved significantly faster and with better support for children and families.

The programme places the needs, safety and wellbeing of children at the heart of family court decision-making, helping to identify risks earlier, particularly in cases involving domestic abuse, while reducing the lengthy and often stressful court processes that families can experience.

To support the new approach locally, the Police and Crime Commissioner for Merseyside, Emily Spurrell, has secured more than £677,000 of funding from the Ministry of Justice over the next two years to introduce specialist Independent Domestic Violence Advisers (IDVAs) into the family court process across Cheshire and Merseyside.

Following an open application process in July 2026 which attracted applications from five providers, the Commissioner has today announced that Local Solutions will deliver the service across Cheshire and Merseyside.

Local Solution’s specialist advisers will work alongside partners involved in family court proceedings to ensure that the experiences and safety concerns of domestic abuse victims are properly understood. They will also help identify risks at an earlier stage and connect families to appropriate support services.

The service is expected to begin operating in November across Cheshire and Merseyside.

Cheshire Police and Crime Commissioner Dan Price said:

“This partnership approach will help strengthen the support available to children and families across the region.

“While the greatest level of demand sits within Merseyside, meaning they are best placed to lead this work, the benefits of the programme will extend beyond geographical boundaries. Through close collaboration, Cheshire will contribute to the project and work alongside partners to share learning, improve practice and ensure better outcomes for children and families in Cheshire.” 

Merseyside Police Commissioner Emily Spurrell added:

"Family court proceedings can be incredibly challenging for children and families, particularly when domestic abuse is a factor. Too often, children and vulnerable victims are left waiting far too long while important decisions about their future are made.

"This new child-focused approach will help ensure that children's welfare remains at the centre of proceedings, while victims of domestic abuse receive specialist support and safeguarding from the earliest possible stage.

"By bringing dedicated domestic abuse specialists into the family court process, we can help identify risks sooner, better support families, and improve outcomes for children across Merseyside and Cheshire.”

Kerry Dowling, Head of Early Intervention, Prevention & Participation at Local Solutions, said:

“We are delighted to have been selected to deliver this important service across Cheshire and Merseyside and to bring our experience to such a positive development in the family court process.

“Through our work with victim-survivors and families, we understand how difficult navigating family court proceedings can be, particularly where domestic abuse, coercive control and safeguarding concerns are present. 

“The Child Focused Courts approach provides a real opportunity to improve that experience. By bringing specialist IDVAs into the process, we can help ensure domestic abuse, patterns of behaviour and risk are identified and understood as early as possible, with the safety and experiences of victims and children considered throughout.

“We are really looking forward to working alongside Cafcass, the courts, local authorities and safeguarding partners to support this positive change. Our commitment is to provide high-quality, specialist support and, most importantly, help achieve the safest and best possible outcomes for the children and families we support.”

Local Solutions will work closely with local authorities, courts, Cafcass, police and safeguarding partners to help improve information sharing, identify risks earlier and ensure children, young people and families receive the support they need throughout the court process.

Child Focused Courts currently operate in 10 of the 43 family court areas in England and all of Wales, including Birmingham, the West Midlands, Dorset, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, and West Yorkshire.

Backed by £17 million in Government funding for the next financial year, the model is now being rolled out across Northumbria and North Durham, Cleveland and South Durham, Lancashire, Cumbria, York and North Yorkshire, Cheshire and Merseyside, Northamptonshire, and Coventry and Warwickshire.

The national rollout follows positive results from existing Child Focused Courts, where family court backlogs were reduced and cases were resolved up to seven and a half months faster, helping children avoid prolonged uncertainty and conflict.

The Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Merseyside is leading the implementation of the programme on behalf of both Merseyside and Cheshire, reflecting the shared family court area across the two regions.

Funding allocated by the Ministry of Justice totals £178,350 in 2026/27 and £499,380 in 2027/28.

Pictured - Cheshire Police and Crime Commissioner Dan Price.