Freedom of Information Requests (FOIs)

Portsmouth City Council – FOI 2025/01840: We requested data on family court involvement, parental assessment, parental alienation, complaints, CMS links, and child outcomes (2018–present).

Council Response: Most requested data was not recorded or only available via a manual trawl exceeding Section 12 limits. No central records exist for: residency outcomes, primary carer assessments by gender, policies or training for fathers’ suitability as carers, monitoring for gender bias, parental alienation cases, CMS referrals, or child outcome analysis. Complaints from fathers require 29.7 hours of manual review; Council refused citing cost limits.

Why this fails: Life-changing decisions about children are being made without monitoring for fairness, gender bias, or parental alienation, leaving families and policymakers without evidence to identify inequalities or implement meaningful reform.

Portsmouth City Council – Refined FOI 2025/01840: A refined request (Jan 2023–present) sought more specific data on Section 7 reports, primary carer assessments, parental alienation, complaints from fathers, CMS links, and child outcomes.

Council Response: Almost all information is not centrally recorded or not held.

The Council confirmed that answering some questions would exceed Section 12 cost/time limits.

No policies, guidance, or internal monitoring exist on parental alienation, gender bias, or CMS links.

Why this fails: Even when requests are refined, no meaningful data exists, showing systemic neglect in tracking family outcomes and ensuring fairness in decision-making.

Department for Work and Pensions – FOI 2025/86182 (CMS Data): Requested CMS data from 2019 onwards: paying/receiving parents by gender, maintenance collected/written off/uncollected, fees raised, and enforcement actions.

DWP Response: Paying parents data: publicly available via Stat-Xplore. Receiving parents gender breakdown: withheld, planned for future publication (Section 22). Maintenance collected/written off/uncollected: available via published accounts. Collection/enforcement fees: £57.7m collected in 2023/24; enforcement fees £2.1m. Enforcement actions: available in CMS statistics (Table 6.2).

Why this fails: Critical gendered data on receiving parents is withheld, and high fees demonstrate the system profits while still failing to ensure fair outcomes, especially in shared care.

Department for Work and Pensions – CMS Compliance (12 Feb 2024): Requested compliance and enforcement rates across Direct Pay and Collect & Pay CMS cases.

DWP Response: Direct Pay compliance (68% of cases) not recorded. Only limited Collect & Pay data exists.

Why this fails: The system collects fees but fails to ensure children receive what they are legally entitled to, leaving families unprotected.

Parliamentary Questions (PQs)

PQ 80687 – Ministry of Justice: Asked: proportion of Cafcass Section 7 reports recommending shared care; training on parental alienation/equal parenting.

MoJ Response: Cafcass does not record shared care recommendations. “Parental alienation syndrome” not recognised. Training covers alienating behaviours and domestic abuse.

Why this fails: Children’s emotional abuse goes unrecognised and unaddressed, with no centralised measurement of shared care.

PQ 80686 – Ministry of Justice: Asked: average waiting time for first hearings in private family law.

MoJ Response: Average 9 weeks (Q2 2025), excluding adjourned/delayed cases.

Why this fails: Many families wait months or years, leaving children and parents in prolonged uncertainty.

PQ 80685 – Ministry of Justice: Asked: proportion of Child Arrangement Orders that were shared care vs sole residency since 2019.

MoJ Response: Data not recorded centrally; manual review “disproportionate cost.”

Why this fails: The government cannot measure equality in care arrangements, undermining evidence-based reform.

PQ 80684 – Department for Work and Pensions: Asked: total CMS fees collected from parents over last five years.

DWP Response: £57.7m collected (2019/20–2023/24), with paying parents contributing £48.2m.

Why this fails: Families pay millions in fees for a system that fails to enforce fairness.

Cafcass – Parental Alienation Mentions (5 Mar 2025): Requested: national statistics on parental alienation references.

Response: Mentions rose 46% since 2020. No central tracking or consistent definition exists.

Why this fails: Without reliable data, policymakers cannot understand the scale of harm or act effectively.

Planned FOIs & Parliamentary Questions for 2026

Ministry of Justice: Enforcement rates of breached Child Arrangement Orders (2024).

Cafcass: Annual training budgets and attendance for alienation and equal parenting courses.

DWP / CMS: Percentage of arrears written off and incorrect income assessments (2019–2025).

Home Office: Re-examination of parental alienation under the Domestic Abuse Act 2021.

Local Authorities: Data on parental alienation complaints, disaggregated by gender.

Family Justice Council: Consultation/contributor data for 2024 guidance on alienating behaviours.

HM Courts & Tribunals Service: Average case length in private family law, by region.

Why this is needed: These future requests aim to fill critical gaps in transparency, accountability, and data, which are essential for meaningful family law reform.

To support our campaign, submit evidence, or collaborate on FOIs: hello@family-act.uk