MPs tasked with holding the government to account on spending have revealed the shocking extent of delays in the family court - with more than 4,000 children involved in cases yet to be resolved after 100 weeks.

In a damning report published today, the House of Commons public accounts committee criticised the Ministry of Justice and Department for Education for failing to recognise the urgent need for reform ‘glaringly obvious to court users’.

MPs discovered regional variations in which public law cases were resolved in 24 weeks in Wales but 53 weeks in London. Private law cases were resolved within 18 weeks in Wales but 70 weeks in London. A shortage of district judges was partly to blame for delays.

Today’s report also paints a dire picture on data. The committee said HM Courts and Tribunals Service collected insufficient demographic data on children and no data on outcomes for different user groups. The MoJ and DfE struggled to fully understand the triggers affecting case length, making it difficult to know where to prioritise efforts.

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While the family justice system involves many organisations across the government and judiciary, the committee failed to find a single body accountable for overall system performance. The Family Justice Board, which was set up to improve performance, met on average 2.5 times a year between June 2018 and December 2024.

‘Pathfinder’ courts, which adopt a more child-led, problem-solving approach to resolving disputes, reduced case duration, but the committee said progress to roll them out was slow. The Pathfinder model requires significantly more resources but the committee said no assessment has been carried out on how much funding is needed.

Committee deputy chair Clive Betts said every submission MPs received ‘contributed to a picture of a system badly letting down the children and families that it is there to serve’. The MoJ and DfE have been given three months to come up with a plan to cut delays.

The committee based its inquiry on a National Audit Office report published earlier this year which found family court delays were putting children at risk of harm and anxiety, and doubled legal aid spend.