Family Court Transparency Pilot

Background: why the pilot was introduced

Family courts in England and Wales were historically almost entirely closed to the press. The combination of the Administration of Justice Act 1960 s.12 (prohibiting publication of proceedings) and the Children Act 1989 created a system where almost nothing about care proceedings, adoption, or serious child welfare cases could reach the public.

Concerns about lack of accountability — including cases where social workers, judges, or experts were alleged to have failed children without public scrutiny — led to the 2009 reforms allowing press to attend. But attendance without the right to report had limited effect. The Transparency Pilot, led by Sir Andrew McFarlane (President of the Family Division), went further: accredited journalists can now attend and report, subject to strict anonymity obligations.

The Transparency Project (transparencyproject.org.uk) has tracked the pilot from inception and publishes detailed analysis. It is essential reading for journalists covering family courts.

What journalists can and cannot publish

Accreditation and access

To attend as an accredited journalist under PD36J, you must hold a valid press card from a body recognised by the Judicial Press Office — this includes NUJ, NCTJ-accredited outlets, and PPA members. Legal bloggers who are legally qualified may also attend under a separate category.

Before attending, notify the court listing office so that they can alert the judge. There is no pre-clearance system — attendance is a right, not a privilege, under the pilot — but notification helps the court manage the process. You must carry your press card at all times and show it if requested.

The judge retains power to exclude journalists where, in the particular circumstances of the case, the interests of the child or a vulnerable party clearly outweigh the public interest in attendance. Exclusion must be justified specifically — a general discomfort with media presence is not sufficient grounds.

Judicial discretion and publication permissions

Judges in pilot courts can give journalists permission to report more than the default allows. For example, a judge may permit naming the local authority, or allow reference to a published expert report. Always ask — and always get any such permission recorded in the order of the court.

Conversely, judges can impose additional restrictions beyond the defaults — for example, prohibiting reporting of a particular piece of evidence that could indirectly identify a child. These bespoke restrictions must be explicit and recorded. Challenge any restriction you believe is improperly wide — but do so through the court, not by ignoring it. See our reporting restrictions guide for how to make a challenge.

Finding published family court judgments

• ›BAILII (bailii.org/ew/cases/EWFC) — the primary repository for published family court judgments in England and Wales.
• ›Judiciary website (judiciary.gov.uk) — selected judgments, particularly from the President of the Family Division, are published here.
• ›Transparency Project (transparencyproject.org.uk) — analysis and commentary on key family court judgments, often with links to the source judgment.
• ›Casemine and similar commercial services — aggregators of publicly available judgments, useful for searching by legal issue or party type.

Common mistakes and how to avoid them

• ⚠Publishing the name of the family's solicitors where that would identify the parties — the same principle as not naming the parties themselves.
• ⚠Quoting directly from documents filed in proceedings without checking whether the court has placed them in the public domain.
• ⚠Assuming that because a judgment is published on BAILII it can be freely quoted without anonymisation — check what the judgment itself directs.
• ⚠Not checking whether the pilot applies to the type of hearing you are attending — some emergency and without-notice hearings are excluded.
• ⚠Photographing or filming outside the court building where the child or family members might be present.

Related guides

Frequently asked questions