Resolution Annual Report 2024

Foreword

Words by Colin Jones and Grant Cameron

In 2024 we continued to speak up for you and the people you support, bringing your insight and experience to the door of policymakers and officials, as we shape the future of family justice together.

Despite a challenging and changing political environment, we are proud that Resolution continues to cement its role as a key influencer and trusted partner among government, officials, and parliamentarians from all parties.

Last year the external environment shifted, with a General Election, a new government, the continued pressures on the cost of living and restrictions on public expenditure all having an impact on Resolution and our members.

We were well placed to respond to the political changes of last year, with the launch of our Vision for Family Justice in late 2023 providing the cornerstone for our political engagement throughout 2024. Indeed, our members’ main ask within that work – cohabitation reform – was announced in the Labour Party Manifesto, and reiterated when the new government was formed.

One year on from the launch of our Vision, political dialogue has moved from calling for reform of cohabitants’ rights, to discussing what that reform should look like. This is another landmark moment for

our organisation and represents a validation of the resources and member time that has gone into this work over a number of years.

Our membership survey from 2024 helped to inform the board and staff team’s thinking, and is reflected in our strategic direction and the short, medium and long term planning in which both members and staff are regularly engaged throughout the year.

The rearticulation of our work and aspiration for members sets out our strategic direction for the next five to ten years with four strategic themes of work:

• Setting best practice standards
• Building a network of family justice professionals
• Ensuring family justice is fit for purpose
• Developing innovative practice

These four themes are developed on a set of underpinning principles, centred around the knowledge that having a thriving and diverse membership base who are actively involved and engaged in our work across the country is essential to developing and delivering our four strategic themes. The underpinning principles are:

• Membership development
• Regional development
• Member involvement

We have been pleased to see that our member numbers remain strong, with nearly 6,500 practitioners remaining with or joining Resolution. This is a result of Resolution’s continued development and improvements to our membership offer and the support and services we provide for members.

We did see a small (c.5%) drop in our overall member numbers, explained through a combination of the findings of the member insight report, the economic environment and the current difficulties faced by all membership organisations.

Our training and learning has now returned to pre-pandemic attendee levels and in May 2024 over 500 members attended the Resolution National Conference in Manchester. Resolution  continues to provide hundreds of hours of online training available free of charge, as part of our commitment to support family justice professionals and their firms.

As a profession we are truly stronger together.  And there’s no greater example of collaboration than that shown by our Regions and Committees. Resolution engages with over 1,500 active volunteer members each year.

Our committees, regions and members meeting virtually continues the positive impact of more members being engaged in our organisation that would otherwise be able to because of travel and time restraints.

In 2024, we continued to develop and consolidate our strong relationships with lawmakers and policy influencers, in particular liaising on a regular basis with Ministry of Justice officials and meeting with the new Family Justice and Legal Aid Ministers in October.

This year we held a high-level roundtable event in Parliament; spoke at events and engaged with parliamentarians at the national conference of the party of government; supported our members to highlight our Vision for Family Justice with candidates during the General Election campaign; and regularly provided media and public-facing commentary to underline the need for reform.

In addition, we have responded to regularly  government consultations; provided evidence to numerous  Select Committees; and made media comment on a whole range of other issues in order to represent our members and make the case for family justice reform.

During 2024 Resolution held our second standalone awards ceremony, celebrating our members’ achievements and providing an opportunity to showcase work going on across the country to promote and support our Code of Practice. These are The awards for family justice professionals and will continue in 2025, with the introduction of new award categories and responding to member feedback to accommodate as many potential nominees as possible.

Over the last 40 years, members working lives have changed so much, yet our organisational ethos remains the same. We deal with family matters in a constructive way, putting the needs of the family first, and at the centre of that is the Code of Practice.

Our greatest strength is in the diversity of our membership. As an organisation, we are home to a broad range of individuals, all with different expertise and skills working across many specialist areas.

At it’s heart, Resolution is a membership organisation run by members for members, and our future lies with each and every one of you.

In this year’s report 

Resolution Awards 2024
Awareness Week 2024
Policy Activity and Consultation Responses
Domestic Abuse in Financial Remedy Proceedings
National Conference 2024
Resolution Events & Training
A rallying call to YRes members
Specialist Accreditation
The Review
Publications and Handbooks
Talking Family Law
Our Committees in 2024
Thanks to our Volunteers
Annual Accounts 2024