Private Law Pathfinder Pilot: process evaluation and financial analysis
This report provides the findings of the process evaluation and exploratory financial analysis of the Pathfinder pilots in Dorset and North Wales family court areas.
Applies to England and Wales
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The Pathfinder pilot aims to improve the court experience and outcomes for children and parents involved in private family law proceedings, including those who have experience of domestic abuse. The initial pilot was designed in response to recommendation from the Harm Panel report to reform private law by trialling a more problem-solving, investigative approach which better supports victims of domestic abuse and other harms.
In the Pathfinder courts the usual Child Arrangements Programme (CAP) is suspended and replaced with a revised process for relevant cases.
The pilot launched in Dorset and North Wales in February 2022. It expanded to South East Wales in April 2024, Birmingham in May 2024 and Mid and West Wales on 3 March. The pilot will next launch in West Yorkshire on 3 June.
The research examined how the Pathfinder model works at an operational level from the perspectives of operational staff, the judiciary and magistrates in the first two Pathfinder sites. It sought to explore what has worked well, critical components of the model required for successful implementation, lessons learned and good practice in the two pilot areas. This evaluation also included an exploratory financial analysis which compared the costs of delivering Pathfinder in the two pilot areas to delivering the CAP in two comparator areas.