When your family is changing, you need someone who understands the whole picture.
Practical, compassionate guidance for couples navigating separation, with a former family lawyer who has seen it all.
Divorce does not just happen to one person.
It happens to a family.
And while there is no shortage of solicitors to handle the legal side, or therapists to help with the emotional fallout, there is often a gap in between. A space where a couple needs practical, informed, compassionate guidance on how to make this work for everyone. Not just legally. Not just emotionally. But as a family.
That is where family consultancy comes in.
What Is Family Consultancy?
Family consultancy sits between legal advice and therapy. It is not one or the other. It is the practical, relational, child-focused work that helps separating couples navigate the process in a way that protects everyone involved, especially the children.
As a family consultant, I work with both of you. Sometimes together, sometimes separately, depending on what is needed and what feels safe. But the focus is always on the couple and the family system, not just one person’s perspective.
I help with the practical and emotional aspects of separation and divorce that solicitors do not cover and therapists do not specialise in. Things like:
- How to communicate with each other when emotions are running high
- How to have the conversation with your children about what is happening
- How to build a co-parenting arrangement that works for your family, not just on paper
- How to manage the practicalities of separating your lives without it becoming a battleground
- How to think clearly about finances, housing, and the future when both of your nervous systems are in overdrive
- How to stay focused on what matters most, even when conflict is pulling you in every direction
Who Is This For?
Family consultancy is for couples going through separation who want more than legal representation or therapy alone.
You might be:
- A couple at the very beginning, trying to work out what separation actually looks like and where to start
- Two people mid-divorce who feel overwhelmed by decisions and need a neutral professional who understands the process to help you both think clearly
- A couple who want to separate as constructively as possible and need support to have the difficult conversations without them escalating
- Parents struggling with co-parenting arrangements who need practical strategies that work for everyone
- A couple dealing with the complexities of neurodivergence as well as navigating separation.
- A couple in a high-conflict dynamic who need specialist support to manage communication and protect boundaries on both sides
How It Works
Initial Consultation
I meet with you as a couple to understand where you are, what you are finding difficult, and what you want the outcome to look like for your family. If it feels more appropriate, I can see each of you separately first before bringing you together.
Joint Sessions
Structured, practical sessions where I help you work through decisions together. This might be thinking through a financial proposal, building a co-parenting plan, preparing for mediation, or simply finding a way to communicate that does not end in conflict.
Individual Sessions Within the Process
Sometimes one or both of you will need space to process something separately before coming back together. That is completely normal and I build it into the work where it is needed.
Ongoing Support
Some couples need a few focused sessions. Others want regular check-ins over weeks or months as they move through the process. There is no fixed programme. We work at the pace that suits your family.
Why Me?
I trained as a lawyer. I qualified as a mediator. I have spent over a decade working as a therapeutic divorce coach. And I am the UK’s only accredited High Conflict Diversion Specialist.
What that means in practice is that I understand the legal framework, I understand the emotional landscape, and I know how to help people make good decisions when their capacity for decision-making is at its lowest.
I am warm, empathetic and direct, and I will always be honest with you. My job is to facilitate your own decision making and that may include an initial period of psycho-education so that you are fully equipped to make the right decisions for your family. I will never tell you what to do. My job is to help you think clearly, so that the decisions you make are ones you can stand behind.
I have seen what works and what does not. And I pour all of that experience into every conversation.
What People Say
“Emma has a special knack of asking just the right question at just the right time to unlock my constrained thinking. I always come away feeling uplifted and ready to approach my goal with a fresh perspective.”
“Not only has Emma saved me a small fortune by avoiding unnecessary solicitor visits, she has also equipped me with the knowledge I need and the confidence to move things forward.”
I would love to hear from you.
If you and your partner are separating and you want someone who can help you both navigate this well, not just the legal process, not just the emotions, but how it all connects for your family, I would love to hear from you.
Book a free 30-minute consultation to talk about what is going on and whether family consultancy is right for your situation.
You are welcome to get in touch individually or together. Many couples start with one person reaching out, and that is perfectly fine.