The Legal Services Commission provides Public Funding for Family Mediation.  This enables us to offer our services free to people who need to resolve a legal dispute concerning certain family matters and who qualify because they have low income and small capital reserves.

Are you entitled to free mediation?

You are automatically entitled to free mediation if either you or your current partner is in receipt of Income Support, Income-based Job Seekers Allowance or Guaranteed State Pension Credit.  If you can show us evidence of this, no other assessment is needed.

If you and/or your current partner's total gross income is less than £2,657 over the calendar month up to and including the day we assess you.  This must include ALL income (i.e. employment, state benefits, maintenance, Working Family Tax Credit, Child Benefit and assistance from friends and relatives).  A higher gross income cap applies to families with more than 4 dependant children.

If your total gross income is low enough, you would qualify for free mediation if you and/or your current partner's:

disposable capital is £8,000 or less AND disposable income is £733 per month or less

Disposable Income is your gross income after allowances have been deducted.  Allowances include:

• Income Tax
• National Insurance
• Certain State Benefits (including Invalid Care Allowance and War Pensions)
• Maintenance payments (including bills you pay for your ex-partner)
• Actual childcare expenses
• Rent or Mortgage Payments

There are also allowances for dependants (children who live with you).  The amounts for children depend on the child's age one calendar month before you assessment.  The monthly amounts are:-

• £250.16 for children 15 years old and under
• £250.16 for 16 years and over
• £162.08 for dependant spouse or partner where you are living as a couple
• £45 per wage earner (not self-employed) against work related expenses, i.e. travel

No allowance is made for pension contributions, union fees, professional subscriptions and other deductions from pay at source in calculating disposable income.

All War Pensions paid under the Naval, Military and Air Forces (Disability & Death) Service Pension Order 1983 are disregarded when calculating disposable income.

Housing Costs:

If you have no dependants for whom you are claiming allowances, then the maximum allowed against your income for rent or mortgage costs is £545.

If you have dependants living with you the full cost of your mortgage or rent is deducted from your income.

Mortgage repayments include monthly premiums of any linked life insurance/endowment policies, PEP's, etc. which will be used to repay the capital sum borrowed

No allowances are given for council tax, water rates and other household costs such as hire purchase repayments unless these are for your ex-partner who is no longer living with you.

Changeable Income (including self-employed)

If you and/or your current partner's income is vairable (due to bonuses, commission, nature of employment or payment) and goes up after the interview to a level where you would be ineligible, the change makes no difference.  Once free mediation has been granted it will not be taken away unless a mistake was made or you were dishonest in your application.  If you wish to delay assessment until a  month when you think you will be eligible, you may choose either to postpone the first mediation session or to pay for mediation until you become eligible.

Self employed income is the level of drawings taken from the business for personal use.  We will need to know the amount normally taken per month.  You are not allowed to artificially reduce the drawings in order to qualify for public funding.

How is disposable capital calculated:

This means the amount or value of assets or savings that you might reasonably be expected to use to pay the cost of settling your dispute.  It includes capital obtained by a loan or other borrowing.  It does not include household furniture or effects, clothes, tools and trade implements or payments under the Community Care Act.  Annual bonuses are classed as capital not income.

Capital assets that are part of the dispute being mediated are not counted in the assessment for free mediation.  However, if the only issues being mediated are those concerning arrangements for the children then capital assets cannot be treated as being in dispute, even if they actually are.

Part of the value of your home is counted towards capital if it is not in dispute.  The dwelling should be valued at the same amount for which it could be sold on the open market.  The first £100,000 of the value of your share of the property is not counted.

In addition up to £100,000 can be allowed for your mortgage.