Family Procedure Rules – What’s New

Family Procedure Rules – What’s New

Last reviewed and updated: 15 January 2026
Source authorities: Ministry of Justice · HMCTS · justice.gov.uk

Purpose of this page

This page provides a current, plain-English overview of recent and upcoming changes to the Family Procedure Rules (FPR) and associated Practice Directions (PDs) that directly affect:

• litigants in person,

• parents involved in private law children proceedings,

• parties involved in financial remedy cases,

• those navigating appeals, safeguarding issues, or digital court processes.

It is designed to be a living reference page, updated as official guidance changes.
Interpretative commentary is provided in linked blog articles.

Important: This page summarises procedural changes only. It does not provide legal advice.

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At-a-glance: what’s changed recently (2025–early 2026)

The period from late 2024 through early 2026 has seen structural procedural reform, not cosmetic change. The most significant developments fall into five themes:

1. Appeals and permission stages

2. Domestic abuse and safeguarding (PD12J and related PDs)

3. Court bundles and evidence (new PD27A)

4. Digitisation and mandatory online processes

5. Pathfinder and pilot procedural models

Each is summarised below.

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1. Family Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2025

The Family Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2025 amend the Family Procedure Rules 2010. The key provisions are now in force or coming into force as follows:

Rule 16.4 FPR – effective 5 January 2026

• Removes an obsolete cross-reference following the abolition of court consent for under-18 marriage.

• This is a technical amendment with limited practical impact for most litigants.

Rule 29.1 FPR – effective 1 June 2026

• Extends protections allowing a party to withhold another party’s contact details from disclosure to other parties.

• Particularly relevant in cases involving:

  • domestic abuse,

  • safeguarding risks,

  • multiple parties or complex family structures.

Rule 30.3 FPR – effective 2 March 2026

• Introduces a mandatory permission stage for appeals from decisions of:

  • lay justices, and

  • benches of lay justices.

• Permission applications must now be made to the appeal court, not the original decision-maker.

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2. Practice Direction updates of particular importance

PD12J – Child Arrangements & Domestic Abuse

(In force from 5 January 2026)

PD12J has been substantively amended. Key changes include:

• Replacement of the term “honour-based violence” with “honour-based abuse”.

• Removal of references to Scott Schedules, with emphasis on:

  • holistic assessment,

  • patterns of coercive or controlling behaviour,

  • contextual analysis rather than incident-by-incident listing.

• New requirement for the court to assess risk before ordering interim contact where a child is living in a refuge.

• Explicit reference to the Qualified Legal Representative (QLR) Scheme.

• Clarification that the court has power to decide who pays the costs of supervised contact.

These changes materially affect how allegations are raised, assessed, and managed.

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New PD27A – Court Bundles

(In force from 2 March 2026)

The existing PD27A has been entirely replaced.

Key features of the new PD27A include:

• E-bundles as standard practice.

• Specified typefaces (Arial or Times New Roman).

• Separate bundle requirements for:

  • financial remedy proceedings, and

  • other proceedings (including private and public law children cases).

• Earlier filing deadlines:

  • the main bundle must now be filed five working days before the hearing, not two.

Non-compliance now carries real procedural risk.

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PD30A – Appeals

(Effective 2 March 2026)

• Aligns with amended rule 30.3.

• Confirms that permission to appeal is required for:

  • decisions of lay justices,

  • decisions of justices’ legal advisers.

• Permission applications must be directed to the appeal court, not the original tribunal.

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3. Digital courts and mandatory online systems

Several Practice Directions confirm or extend mandatory use of digital systems:

• PD36ZD now requires legal representatives to use the digital portal for:

  • section 8 Children Act applications,

  • Part 4 Family Law Act applications,
    where the court is onboarded.

• Exceptions apply only where the system is unavailable (e.g. downtime).

• PD36G confirms that the online C100 service is not available to legal representatives where PD36ZD applies.

Litigants in person may still encounter mixed paper/digital systems depending on court and case type.

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4. Pathfinder and pilot schemes

PD36Z – Pathfinder Pilot

• Expanded to additional court areas, including parts of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight from January 2026.

• Replaces the traditional Child Arrangements Programme in pilot courts.

• Emphasises:

  • investigative approach,

  • Child Impact Reports,

  • reduced adversarial process.

PD12B (Pilot)

• Amended to clarify:

  • enforcement timeframes,

  • engagement with children,

  • inclusion of domestic abuse risk assessment summaries in reports.

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5. Why these changes matter for litigants in person

These reforms mean that:

• Procedural missteps are more likely to be decisive.

• Appeals are harder to access without precision.

• Evidence presentation and bundling are strictly regulated.

• Domestic abuse allegations are assessed contextually, not superficially.

• Digital systems can exclude or disadvantage those unfamiliar with them.

Understanding the rules of the process is now as important as understanding the law itself.

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How this page is kept up to date

• This page is reviewed against official updates published on justice.gov.uk.

• The “last updated” date is amended whenever substantive changes occur.

• Interpretative guidance is published separately on the JSH Law blog.

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Related guidance and analysis

You may find the following sections helpful:

• Practice Directions Explained

• Appeals & Permission to Appeal

• Court Bundles and Evidence

• Domestic Abuse & Safeguarding

• Pathfinder and Pilot Courts

(Each topic is expanded in linked blog articles.)

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Regulatory & editorial notice

This page summarises publicly available procedural information.
It does not constitute legal advice and should not be relied upon as such.
For case-specific guidance, independent legal advice should be sought.