Statements for the family court: what you may need and how to write them

How long it takes, and what it would cost

On your own

A week or more of evenings

With Wren

A couple of hours

Solicitor for each statement

£1,240 to £2,4705 to 10 hours

Times and hours are Wren’s estimates for a typical case, not quotes. Solicitor costs are those hours at £247 an hour, the courts’ guideline rate for a solicitor with over four years’ experience, outside London (GOV.UK, Solicitors' guideline hourly rates (in effect from 1 January 2026)). The guideline runs from £200 to £295 an hour outside London depending on experience, firms set their own rates, and VAT is added on top.

Write it yourself, not with AI

A witness statement is your evidence. Practice Direction 22A says it must, if practicable, be in your own words and in the first person. You sign a statement of truth saying you believe the facts in it are true, and proceedings for contempt of court can be brought against anyone who makes a false statement without an honest belief in its truth.

The judiciary's guidance on artificial intelligence warns that AI chatbots are prone to error and can make up cases, citations and quotes. If it looks as if a chatbot was used, a judge may ask about it and what checks you made, and will remind you that you are responsible for what you put to the court.

Wren does not write your statement for you. It takes you through it one step at a time, shows the shape the court expects with a made-up example, and sets out your own words as a numbered draft for you to check and sign.

Statements in children cases

Your court's order says which of these you need, how long each can be and when it is due. Wren has a guided builder or form for each.

1. Position statement: a short summary for one hearing of the issues, your position on each and what you are asking for.
2. Witness statement: your account of the facts, when the court asks for one or to support an application. Form C120 is the GOV.UK template for child arrangements cases about a parental dispute.
3. Statement about the children: what you propose and why, under the points in the welfare checklist.
4. Response to a report: what you agree with in a Cafcass, section 7 or local authority report, where you disagree and why.
5. Schedule of allegations, or your response to one, if the court lists a fact-finding hearing.

Statements in money cases

In financial remedy cases most of your evidence is in Form E. The other documents explain, narrow or answer it.

1. Form E: your financial statement, verified by a statement of truth.
2. ES1, ES2 and a chronology before the First Appointment, and a questionnaire and replies to the other party's questionnaire.
3. Position statement for each hearing.
4. Witness statement, if the court asks for one on a particular issue.
5. Section 25 statement for the final hearing: evidence only, no argument or opinion, and the Financial Remedies Guide suggests no more than 15 pages.

The shape of a witness statement

Practice Direction 22A sets out the format. Wren's drafts follow it, and leave a bracketed note wherever only you can fill something in.

1. Head it with the court, the case number and the names of the applicant and respondent.
2. At the top right of page 1, show who it is for, your initials and surname, its number (1st, 2nd), the exhibit marks and the date.
3. Open with your full name, your address (unless it is being kept confidential), your occupation and that you are a party.
4. Set out the facts in date order, one topic to a paragraph, and number every paragraph.
5. Say which facts you know yourself, and where anything else comes from.
6. Refer to documents by an exhibit mark such as AB1, and keep the exhibits separate.
7. End with the statement of truth, then sign and date it yourself.

The statement of truth

Practice Direction 17A sets out the wording for a witness statement:

"I understand that proceedings for contempt of court may be brought against anyone who makes, or causes to be made, a false statement in a document verified by a statement of truth without an honest belief in its truth. I believe that the facts stated in this witness statement are true."

Only the person making the statement signs it. An electronic signature is acceptable. If a witness statement has no statement of truth, the court may direct that it is not admissible.

A made-up example of the style

This example uses invented names and places. It shows the style only: plain, first person, dated, and saying how you know.

"1. I am the applicant in this case and the mother of Sam, who is 6. I make this statement because the court's order of 2 June 2025 asks me for one. The facts in it are within my own knowledge unless I say otherwise.

2. On 3 May 2025 I arrived at Exampleford Primary School at 3.15pm to collect Sam, as the order says. The respondent was already there and told me Sam would be going home with him instead."

Your case from start to finish

Statements are one part of running your case. Your case overview in Wren shows what usually comes next at each stage, including the documents, deadlines and hearings, so you can prepare each statement in good time. It is procedural information, not legal advice: it does not tell you what to argue or what outcome to ask for.