In Cardiff, this gap is being felt acutely. People navigating issues such as separation and child arrangements are being left without viable options, not eligible for legal aid, and unable to afford to pay a solicitor for advice. Kathryn Fanstone, solicitor at Zeus Family Law, was seeing the same pattern again and again, clients seeking initial advice, then dropping away when the cost became clear:
“There is a big justice gap with single parents. A lot of your income is going towards your children and keeping a roof over your head, so it’s not accessible to go and book a paid consultation with a solicitor.”
It was this pattern that led her to set up a pro bono family law clinic within Zeus Family Law, working with LawWorks and Single Parents Wellbeing (SPW), designed specifically for those falling into that gap. SPW is a community organisation supporting single parents across Wales, providing a trusted space through which people can access advice alongside wider support.
The clinic was built around removing as many barriers as possible. Appointments are booked through SPW, a charity already embedded in the lives of single parents, making it easier for people to seek advice in a space they already trust rather than approaching a law firm directly.
“It can feel quite intimidating to contact a solicitor out of the blue, but booking through Single Parents Wellbeing makes it feel much more accessible. People can be really nervous about whether they should even be speaking to a solicitor, and sometimes it’s just about helping them feel that they are justified in their position.”
That shift matters in practice. As Rachel Brydon from SPW notes, “single parents are juggling a huge amount, work, parenting, everything else, so being able to book something at a time that suits them makes a big difference.”
Appointments are hosted online, available outside standard working hours, and designed to fit around those pressures, meaning people can seek advice when they are able to, not just when services are open. They arrive unsure of where they stand and leave with a clearer sense of their rights, and the confidence to act on them.
That individual support is strengthened by the partnership between Zeus and SPW. Patterns emerge quickly, similar questions, shared concerns, recurring points of confusion, and instead of responding case by case, those patterns are addressed collectively through Q&As and shared guidance, reaching people earlier, often before issues escalate. Because the legal problem is rarely the only problem. It sits alongside financial pressure, emotional strain, and often a sense of isolation. Positioned within a community organisation, the clinic becomes part of a wider support system, not just a point of advice, but a way in.
The demand for this kind of support is not slowing. “These access to justice deserts are so massive that we don’t always realise there are huge sections of society that are completely underserved.”
This clinic does not resolve those structural issues, but it shows what becomes possible when support is designed around how people actually live, and what is at risk when that support is not there. It is a model shaped by what Kathryn was seeing in her own practice at Zeus Family Law, and a reminder that for many, access to justice still depends on whether someone chooses to step in and close the gap.
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