Dads Who Care
For fathers in private family court in England and Wales
Know what matters now.
Understand what comes next.
Dads Who Care is a structured educational resource for fathers going through private family court. Wherever you are in the process, there is guidance to help you understand what is happening now and what may come next.
Over 140 plain-English guides, organised into 13 routes through the process. £49 a month. Cancel anytime.
Understand the process
See where you are and what may come next
Family court can feel difficult to understand when you do not know the stages, the terminology or what happens next. Our free visual overview shows the main route through a private children case in England and Wales.
Wherever you are in the process
Guidance for the stage you are actually at
You do not need to have been through family court before, or to understand the whole system, to find what applies to you now. The guidance covers a substantial part of the process, including:
- Separation and early arrangements
- Receiving court papers
- Cafcass involvement
- Preparing for hearings
- Allegations and fact-finding
- Evidence and statements
- Court orders
- What happens afterwards
Why this exists
You should not have to know the right question to find the right answer
There is already a great deal of family court information online. When you are new to the system, the difficulty is rarely that the information does not exist somewhere. It is knowing what applies to you, where to start, what matters now and what you need to understand next.
Finding out what applies to you can also become expensive if you have to pay someone every time you need a document, hearing or unfamiliar term explained.
Dads Who Care organises educational guidance around the situation you are in, so you do not have to know the right legal term before you can find what matters.
How it works
A route through the process, and depth when you need it
Learning Journeys are the routes. Each one follows a stage of the process in a sensible order, so you can see what matters now and what may come next. The Knowledge Library is the depth: plain-English explanations of documents, hearings, terminology and professional support, for when you want more detail.
Step 1: Start where you are
Open the Journey that matches the stage you are actually at, without needing to understand the whole system first.
Step 2: See what matters now, and what may come next
Follow the guidance in a sensible order, so you are not trying to work out what to search for.
Step 3: Go deeper when you need to
Use the Knowledge Library for plain-English detail on documents, hearings, Cafcass, costs and professional support.
For example, inside one Journey
If family court papers have just arrived
- Your situation: papers have arrived, and a hearing date may already be listed.
- A clear starting point: what to do in the first days, and what not to do while worried or angry.
- What matters now: which dates and deadlines need action, and what the documents actually are.
- What may come next: responding to the application, Cafcass involvement, and the first hearing.
- More detail when you need it: completing the response form, and gathering and preserving evidence.
Membership
One membership, the whole resource
Membership gives you 13 Learning Journeys and over 140 guides, covering the process from separation and receiving papers through Cafcass, hearings, allegations, evidence and orders, to what happens afterwards.
Keep your children at the centre
Calm, child-focused guidance for thinking about how decisions, communication and conflict may affect them.
Prepare properly
Know what to organise, what questions to ask and what may happen at important stages.
Find it all in one place
Stop piecing the process together from fragmented websites, legal language, forums and social media.
Feel more in control
Replace some of the uncertainty with a clearer understanding of what is happening and what may come next.
£49 per month
- 13 Learning Journeys covering the process from separation onwards
- Over 140 practical guides in plain English
- The full Knowledge Library, for detail when you need it
- Member dashboard and search
- New and updated guidance throughout your membership
Monthly subscription. Cancel anytime through your account.
Whatever route you take
Understand the process, whether you represent yourself or get professional help.
Dads Who Care is designed to help you understand the family court process from beginning to end, including the main stages of private Children Act proceedings, what may happen at each stage and what you may need to prepare.
If you choose to represent yourself, our guides and Learning Journeys can help you understand the terminology, documents, hearings and practical steps you may encounter along the way.
If you choose to use a Solicitor, McKenzie Friend or Direct Access Barrister, you can go into those conversations better informed, with a clearer idea of what to ask and where you need professional help. That can help you make better use of the time you are paying for.
Dads Who Care does not replace personalised legal advice. It gives you the knowledge to understand the process and make more informed decisions about how you navigate it.
Our approach
Calm, careful and private by design
Plain English
Court processes, documents and unfamiliar terms explained as clearly as we can put them.
Child-focused
Guidance that encourages calm preparation, avoids unnecessary conflict and keeps children at the centre.
No case documents needed
You do not upload court papers, evidence or personal case details to use the platform.
Dads Who Care is an educational platform. It provides educational information, not personalised legal advice or predictions about an individual case. Read the full disclaimer.
Built from lived experience
Dads Who Care was created by a father who spent years trying to understand private family court while remaining an active and loving presence in his child's life.
Over that period, more than £150,000 was spent on legal representation, professional support and navigating the process.
The experience covered the common stages of private children proceedings, and more complex ground as well: Cafcass, contested hearings, allegations, independent social workers, Part 25 experts, Direct Access Barristers, supervised contact and appeals.
Much of what was eventually learned was information he wished he had understood far earlier, and often only discovered once he was already inside the process.
Dads Who Care turns that hard-won experience into structured educational guidance for other fathers, organised around the situation they are facing rather than left to be pieced together under pressure.
Membership is not a handful of articles. It is access to years of accumulated experience, organised into practical guidance you can return to as your case changes.
Start with our free guides
See the kind of practical, plain-English information available inside Dads Who Care. No account required.
How much will family court cost me?
A practical guide to how family court costs build up, how solicitors, barristers and McKenzie Friends charge, and what different types of case may cost.
12 min read
What can I do if my ex stops me seeing my child?
A plain-English guide to what you can do if contact with your child stops after separation, including communication, mediation, court orders and when court may become necessary.
10 min read
What is Cafcass and what do they do in family court?
A plain-English guide to what Cafcass is, what it does in family court, how much weight its recommendations carry and what to expect if Cafcass becomes involved in your case.
11 min read
Common questions
Is Dads Who Care legal advice?
Why join when so much family court information is free online?
Which part of the UK does the platform cover?
Do I upload my court papers?
Can I cancel?
Understand the process before making your next decision
Membership gives you 13 Learning Journeys and over 140 guides across private family court in England and Wales.
£49 per month. Cancel anytime.