A Wednesday afternoon at Dads House family law clinic
Nestled in the middle of a short parade of brightly coloured buildings in South-West London, behind a cheery lime green façade, lies an extraordinary charity that has changed the lives of thousands of single parents and their children.
Dads House was founded by William "Billy" McGranaghan back in 2008 after he became a single father and noticed an acute lack of support for other struggling dads. The family law clinic followed in 2020 and offers free legal advice sessions on Wednesday and Friday afternoons.
The first thing that strikes you when you walk in on a clinic afternoon are warm smiles and a stunning collection of cakes and biscuits laid out on the packed-together tables. Billy and clinic manager Ceri buzz around making sure everyone has tea and coffee, knows each other's names, who is coming in that day, and generally fostering a feeling of warmth and safety.
Clinic solicitor Simon Bruce is the Legal Director of Dads House and a Partner at Dawson Cornwell. He arrives with his dog, Clover, and another lawyer, Jacqueline Fitzgerald from Laurus Law, also joins to ensure that Dads House can run a double clinic, seeing two clients an hour.
The clinic wouldn't exist without a dedicated team of lawyers - both solicitors and barristers - from different firms and Chambers, who regularly offer their advice for free to clients on issues ranging from complex child arrangement proceedings and navigating the court system, through to applying for mediation.
All potential clients start by either completing a form on the Dads House website, and/or making a phone call to Billy. The charity receives up to 5,000 phone and 2,500 email enquiries a year and Billy works seven days a week, speaking to callers to ascertain whether the clinic can help them.
The first appointment of the day begins as Simon greets Ali* and two student volunteers sit down to make notes and provide general support ranging from drafting to research and, most importantly, empathy and reassurance.
Ali has been coming to the clinic for four years and has a court order for his daughter to live with him, but his ex-partner has severe mental health problems and will not stop filing court applications for contact. Simon and Ali are due to attend a court hearing the following day and all hands are on deck to draft and file a position statement, clarifying to the court what is being requested and why.
Ali feels his ex-partner is abusing the court system with relentless applications and has clearly relied heavily on the clinic for support, saying "if it weren't for Dads House, I would have stopped cooperating with the court and lost my patience with it." His hope is that the court will both dismiss the mother's application and prevent her from making any further ones without permission, to protect his daughter.
In the back, behind a screen advertising, football, a food bank, yoga and life coaching - all available through Dads House - Jacqueline and two more student volunteers are huddled around a table helping Sammy* to draft a witness statement for an upcoming hearing in his contact case. This is Sammy's 20th appointment at Dads House, whose lawyers have helped him for 18 months to go from not seeing his child for nearly two years, to having regular overnight contact visits in his shared home. He is softly spoken and clearly adores spending time with his son. The students take comprehensive notes that will later be emailed to Sammy to help him draft a coherent court statement.
Next up at the back table is Tom* - a small, energetic man who has also been part of the Dads House family for years, saying "they do a lot of good work here. I've been in and out of court like a cuckoo clock since 2017". He has two upcoming hearings and needs help to prepare for the next one.
Tom has custody of his two children, neither of whom want to have contact with his chaotic ex-wife, who regularly misses appointments with them and has married a man with a criminal history. Tom understandably has been overwhelmed with the long-term family proceedings and Dads House has helped ensure his children live with him and see their mother when it is safe. This time, he needs help contacting the mother, ensuring medical evidence is before the court, and for a pro bono barrister to be instructed. Clearly grateful, be makes another appointment with Ceri for a month's time and leaves the clinic after a warm chat with Billy.
Ali's appointment has run long, so he's handed over to a student volunteer to wrap things up and help draft a document, while Jack*, a wiry ex-military man, arrives with a lever-arch file, neatly marked with coloured dividers. Simon introduces everyone and summarises Jack's case, adding that he is a particularly nice person and that it's a pleasure to help him, which genuinely seems to be the case with most of the Dads House clients.
Jack's ex-wife has taken their toddler and moved hundreds of miles away, making regular contact with her extremely difficult. He explains that each visit costs more than £300 once he's paid for petrol, a place to stay and the contact centre fee. Devastated by the situation, he explains that he would go every week if he could, but can barely afford to go once a month as he is now in debt.
Simon makes sure Jack is focused on the task ahead and helps him to complete a form C100 (a child arrangements order) and a C1A (allegations of harm and domestic violence). Mindful of Jack's emotional state, Simon reassures him that once they are finished with the forms, Jack will have the chance to chat through his feelings with Jo, the Dads House family life coach, who offers emotional and practical support to divorcing couples on Wednesdays at the clinic.
At the end of an extremely busy three-hour session, there is a quick de-brief with the student advisors to make sure they're happy with the tasks they need to complete and some time for tea and cake. Over the last four years, the family law clinic has handled over 800 client appointments and provided a staggering £2 million worth of free legal advice and representation. Importantly, Dads House allows for repeat appointments, so the team guides a lot of its clients through their journeys from start to finish, establishing strong relationships in the process.
The team is close-knit and dedicated to providing a non-judgmental space for the clients. The combination of Billy's warmth, Ceri's focus and Simon's gentle pragmatism make the Dads House family law clinic a unique and irreplaceable resource for hundreds of careworn families.
* Names have been changed to protect anonymity
