Oliver Conway

“The situation is as grave as it could be.”

Incredible letter of support from HHJ Vincent to family lawyers in response to the legal aid cyber attack.

When senior members of the judiciary are writing that this crisis may take a year to begin to resolve we should all be worried.

Reflections on family law and more … Entering the trauma factory Oliver Conway on how to prepare someone you hardly know for one of the most difficult days of their life.

I work in a Trauma Factory - My latest article for Legal Action Magazine is about how horrendous being in the family court is for both professional and lay parties.

☕️ 🍪

www.lag.org.uk/article/2169...

Private Eye article text: Headline: Failure to ACCT Article: Overstretched prison staff have become "hardened" to incidents of self-harm at a women's prison with one of the worst death records in the country, a coroner has warned. HMP Styal in Cheshire has the highest number of deaths of any prison and accounts for almost half the deaths on the female prison estate, a recent inquest into the death of inmate Sarah Boyle in July 2024 heard. A prevention of future deaths (PFD) report by coroner Victoria Davies to the Ministry of Justice highlights weaknesses in HMP Styal's assessment, care in custody and teamwork (ACCT) process - the care planning system for prisoners identified as being at risk of suicide or self-harm. The report also flagged evidence that staff at the prison were alarmingly blasé about the risk of self-harm. Sarah's death came just months after Davies was assured by the prison service that mental health provision at Styal had been boosted, during the inquest into the suicide of Annelise Sanderson (Eye 1616), who was jailed rather than referred for treatment after assaulting a paramedic who intervened when she drank petrol and threatened to set herself on fire. "I have heard evidence from a number of..." [article continues in next image]

Private Eye article text, continued from last image: "witnesses as to the pressures that the ACCT process places on staff, primarily due to the high number compared to staffing numbers," Davies wrote in her latest PFD report. "The clear consensus... was that the carrying out of ACCT checks, meaningful conversations and documentation of this was difficult whilst also trying to manage the day-to-day regime." Davies noted that the officer on duty on the day of Sarah's death would have been responsible for 48 such checks on at-risk prisoners per hour, and that was not unusual. Evidence from one witness, who has since left the prison, was that as a result of the number of checks required, and the limited resource to do them, checks were frequently missed. The coroner said the sheer number of self-harm incidents and ACCT documents open "appears to have hardened the prison team to expressions of self-harm" resulting in staff telling the inquest things like, "If I opened an ACCT on every woman who said she was suicidal we'd have loads open." Despite the high and complex mental health needs of prisoners at Styal, mental health training is not mandatory for its prison officers. The inquest found that Sarah Boyle died as a result of a self-applied ligature in her cell, although it is uncertain whether she intended to take her own life. The Prisons & Probation Ombudsman is conducting its own investigation into her death. Since she died, three further deaths of women at Styal have also triggered ombudsman investigations.

TW: suicide/self-harm

A coroner has warned that overstretched prison staff have become "hardened" to incidents of self-harm at a women's prison with one of the worst records of inmate deaths in the country

The report to the Ministry of Justice highlighted a lack of staffing

By me, for Private Eye

My client who has been called incapable by people who should know better, in a final hearing all week, took the time to make me these bracelets overnight.

They mean “seek happiness” 🥺

Me: I require an urgent court transcription in 48 hours

transcriber: kinda busy will get back to you in a month.

Legal Action magazine The multi award-winning magazine for legal aid lawyers. Print and online with 20-year archive of issues.

My column in @legalactiongroup.bsky.social Magazine is about Love and Desire in the family court. Subscribe now!

www.lag.org.uk/magazine

The fact that the LAA debacle isn’t being viewed as a crisis shows how poorly legal aid is treated by Govt.

firms, chambers and suppliers will face financial ruin if this goes on for the months it is likely to go on for.

CCMS cost tens of millions to create. There should be an inquiry.

The Cruelty - Stolen Generations - 5. Cutting the Roots - BBC Sounds Davie meets Bella to discover how the state treat Traveller families today.

Honoured to be featured on Davie’s BBC Scotland podcast “The Cruelty: Stolen Generations” speaking to my work with Traveller families in care proceedings.

www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

Interested if any family justice orgs are conducting research into the effects of KvS on care proceedings.

Anecdotally it’s seems we need to accept whatever expert the LA put forward for part 25s…

The LAA portal cost tens of millions to set up and its current frozen status is threatening the entire legal
aid sector.

Small firms depend on regular payments to stay afloat and serve their communities.

The sector was on its knees for years before this. Unsure whether we will all weather it.

Sure Start centres generated £2 of financial benefits for every £1 spent, study finds New Labour initiative created ‘remarkably long-lasting’ health and education improvements, says report

Sure Start centres generated £2 of financial benefits for every £1 spent, study finds

www.theguardian.com/education/20...

3. Family Legal Aid inc Children's Rights - sponsor Resolution
⭐️Mary Richardson - Miles and Partners
⭐️Beverley Watkins - Watkins Solicitors
⭐️Lynsey Welsh - Cartwright King

LALY Awards 2025 - General Admission Ticket Join us for the 23rd Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year Awards, or LALYs, organised by Legal Aid Practitioners Group on a not-for-profit basis.

Congratulations to all our finalists🥳 Join us on 4 July to hear the winners announced at our #LALY25 ceremony, aka 'the best night out in the legal aid calendar.' Tickets £15-£45
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/laly-award...

Watkins Solicitors Managing Partner Beverley Watkins Recognised for Excellence in Legal Aid: Shortlisted for the 2025 LALY Awards - Watkins Solicitors Watkins Solicitors is proud to announce that Managing Partner Beverley Watkins has been shortlisted for the 2025 Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year (LALY) Awards in...

We are proud to share that our Managing Partner @beverleywatkins.bsky.social, has been shortlisted for the 2025 @lalyawards.bsky.social for her outstanding work in Family Legal Aid, including Children’s Rights.

Read more: www.watkinssolicitors.co.uk/site/blog/wa...

Congratulations Beverley!!

We have now sold out of our tickets and the wait list is long.😎

Do reach out if you wish for the conference materials. 📧

Finally read - A LA v X & Y and Others (No4: Welfare and reporting of judgments) [2025] EWFC 126 🤯

Unimaginable cruelty from wealthy professionals who knew the impact of their actions.

Abhorrent case. Amazing work from the press.

We have very few tickets left. Do let me know if you can make it. 🙏

We have very few tickets left. Do let me know if you can make it. 🙏

Reflections on family law and more … Why I empathise with my... My own neurodivergence helps me with my work, says Oliver Conway, but too many clients are still being failed by a system designed for neurotypical people.

My latest for legal action magazine about why I empathise with my neurodivergent clients.

lag.org.uk/article/2167....

Reflections on family law and more … We cannot go on; nor can we quit If burned-out lawyers start to prioritise their own mental and physical health, who will step in to protect their clients, asks Oliver Conway.

Reflections on family law and more: We cannot go on; nor can we quit

@oliverconway.bsky.social on why after 10 gruelling years on the child protection frontline, he is facing an impossible dilemma.

We ❤️ legal aid lawyers.

Lots of time left to nominate your favourite - but don’t leave it too late - deadline closes 22 April ⬇️

There is a shameful tradition of demonising disabled people. Why is Labour reigniting it? | Frances Ryan Ministers run away from a wealth tax and then concoct a punitive benefits system. They have made that choice and it’s immoral, says Guardian columnist Frances Ryan

“Under Labour, health is a prerequisite – not for a good life for yourself, but to be a good worker for the nation.” @francesryan.bsky.social on the reported disability cuts: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

3 cheers for the cafe at Portsmouth Combined Court. The Omelette I had was the best i’ve ever eaten anywhere and the whole meal was under a tenner!

Fox and Chave Ebay find 😉

🔥🔥🔥

Can someone photoshop a KC lectern into this pic 🤭😹

Really looking forward to speaking at this event today.

'I was walking to a medical appointment when I realised I might have to quit the job that I love'
Searing, brave & powerful by @oliverconway.bsky.social
#March25LegalActionMag
@legalactiongroup.bsky.social