AT LEAST 772 children have been placed for adoption in Wales in the past five years, after local authorities obtained court orders overriding parental consent.

Councils can apply to courts for a placement order in order to be able to place a child for adoption, which a court can grant if it agrees it is in the best interest of the child.

The new figures, obtained under Freedom of Information requests, show Rhondda Cynon Taf has the highest number of children placed for adoption in this way at 103 since the start of 2006.

The statistics suggest that the resulting adoptions make up the majority of adoptions dealt with by councils, making up 42 out of 47 cases in Blaenau Gwent, 49 out of 52 in Bridgend, 30 out of 31 in Merthyr Tydfil and 17 out of 20 in Monmouthshire.

Jonathan Pearce, chief executive of charity Adoption UK, said the figures reflected the changing face of adoption in the UK. He said: "It's very different from the situation 40 years ago where children were being adopted because society didn't approve of unmarried mothers.

"These days it's about social services intervention in children's lives.

"What they will always try to do is work to try to keep children in the family. Sometimes that won't work. It's a very rigorous process."

However, he warned that the circumstances in which these adoptions take place may have knock-on effects for adoptive parents and adopted children, as children who social services have had to remove from abusive or neglectful situations may be affected in the long-term.

He said children may also struggle to understand that they were removed because it was in their best interests.

Mr Pearce said: "Social workers do life-story work to try and give children a sense of what has happened in their past.

"There's a move to be more open and honest with children about why they removed. For many of these children, they've come from horrendously abusive backgrounds.

"When they look at their life storybook, the message is, 'your parents couldn't cope, they weren't able to look after you', when the situation was they were beating them up.

"They're saying, 'If things were so positive, or not that bad, why was I taken away?' That's very confusing for the children."

The adoptions that take place after court orders have been obtained are referred to as forced adoptions by campaigners who believe that in some cases social services are trying to meet government targets rather than acting in the best interests of the child.

Mr Pearce said that while birth parents may describe these adoptions as forced, because the majority do not want to lose their children, it was not quite right, as sometimes the state needs to intervene to protect children.

Elizabeth Williams, a solicitor at Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice in Cardiff, who represents families fighting care and placement orders, said the system does give families an opportunity to sort out parenting problems.

She said: "We see a steady flow [of cases]. There was a bit of an influx after the Baby P case, I think social services panicked a bit and investigated more cases. I think it's settled down now.

"Once the court has got it a lot of people are concerned about how long it takes.

"The reason it takes so long is that the parents need to be able to prove they're able to look after their children.

"The court tries to give them every opportunity to try and improve. Once you get to a final order, the court has decided it's best for the child to be adopted or placed in long-term foster care."

She said the hardest cases are where the parents have really tried to make improvements and have made progress but it has not been enough to get their children back.

The figures on how many children were adopted without their parents' consent since 2006 were obtained through Freedom of Information request via the What Do They Know website, with responses.

All the councils responded to this, or a separate request about the number of children placed for adoption after court orders, apart from Vale of Glamorgan, which said the number of children involved was so small there was a risk they could be identified.

As a child, Melanie Hamer loved to watch Crown Court on a black-and-white TV with her grandparents. Now she runs her own law firm. Emily Woodrow has met up with the divorce lawyer from Cynon Valley and talked about achieving "more than she imagined possible"

GROWING up in Aberdare, Melanie Hamer had a very happy childhood.

Her parents, dad John, a painter, and mum Audrey, who worked for the local council, did not have a huge amount of money, but what they did have they spent on her and her younger sister Deborah.

She lived in a typical terraced house surrounded by her friends, but as her mother worked, she spent her school holidays with her grandparents, which is where her dreams of becoming a lawyer began.

"We used to watch Crown Court together on a black-and-white television and I was fascinated by it", said Melanie, now a 45-year-old mother-of-two.

"So by the age of 13 I had decided that was what I wanted to do, despite coming from a very working class background and having no lawyers in my family.

"I worked very hard in school - I wasn't the perfect pupil, and talking too much often resulted in me having to sit at the front with the teacher, but I always got good grades when it really mattered.

"When I applied to university to do law, someone suggested I was aiming too high.

"I don't think they realised I would rise to the challenge, but I was determined.

"I'm a great believer of covering every angle, and as I wasn't wholly convinced I'd get the grades for university, I'd managed to get myself a job in Lloyds Bank in Merthyr Tydfil as a back-up.

"I was due to start work on the Monday, but when I got my results on the Thursday before, I had to call them and say I wouldn't need the job.

"I think my mum wanted me to take the job so I could stay home, but I know she was proud of me going to university.

"She wasn't the sort of mum who would say so, but when she died of cancer in 2002, I had to go through her papers looking for a will and I came across every press cutting there had ever been about me and my professional life - that spoke volumes to me.

"My dad however is incredibly verbal about his pride and will tell anyone he speaks to at any given opportunity what I now do for a living - sometimes to my embarrassment."

When it came to choosing where to study, Melanie Hamer found it difficult to decide.

"All my friends were going to Swansea and that was where I wanted to go as I had spent holidays there during my childhood and loved the idyllic lifestyle it offered.

"But they didn't do law, so I couldn't go.

"Aberystwyth was only my fourth choice, but when I went to visit I fell in love with it.

"I went to Aberystwyth knowing no-one and having never lived away from home before and that was daunting, but in hindsight it was good, because I had no choice but to make friends very quickly."

Melanie's years at university were some of the best of her life.

Having come from an all-girls' school in Aberdare, she enjoyed being able to have boys who were just friends and grew close to a number of Irish students who she says had "an incredible sense of humour and a great knowledge of how to party."

From there, she went to Guildford Law School.

Melanie then returned to Cardiff to start a training contract with Phillips and Buck, now Eversheds, and Daryl, the man who was to become her husband whom she had met at university, went with her.

She claims it was much easier to get law jobs back then, as fewer people went to university or did their Law Society finals, so there was much less competition - unlike today, when she receives 500 applications for one training position.

"It was the Thatcher years, so everyone worked very hard," said Melanie, who now lives in Pentyrch, Cardiff.

While working in the law department there, she dreamt of opening the first niche family law practice in Wales, and that dream became reality when Eversheds decided they wanted to concentrate on their commercial side.

As a result, Melanie and the rest of the family law department co-founded their own firm, Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice.

"My job makes me realise how lucky I am to have my husband Daryl and my two children Sam, 11, and Katie, six", she said.

Melanie's proud mother died of breast cancer in 2002, aged 65.

"I threw myself into work as it gave me something to concentrate on other than the catastrophe going on around me", she said.

"I think it was actually my saving grace.

"It took my mind off reality, and it was wonderful to be able to pick up files and do my job."

"I knew if I sat at home, I would just be in my bed crying and that would be a waste of my time and against what my mother would have wanted.

Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice is the largest niche family firm in Wales.

Melanie is also one of the founders of the South Wales Ladies Business Club, which now has around 700 women on their database.

The Solicitors Journal's Young Lawyer magazine section ran a piece in its most recent issue about the legal scene in South Wales. Our Partner Thea Hughes was one of those asked for their thoughts on living and working in Cardiff.

"Cardiff is a great place to live. There's so much on offer that it's hard to avoid sounding like a tourist board advert.

"One of the first things I noticed was how friendly the people are. You get the feeling that you're living in a great big village.

"I love the clean air, and the fact that we are so close to the sea, but also to the hills and the Welsh countryside - as a keen walker and climber, it's hard to beat. The city itself is also pretty remarkable, with some beautiful buildings and enough bars and restaurants to meet anyone's taste.

"For all the same reasons, it's also a great place to be based. Firms with offices in Cardiff can offer their trainees a quality of life - with all the advantages of both city centre and rural practice - that other cities simply can't provide.

"Twenty-somethings make up the biggest share of Cardiff's growing population - it's a young, vibrant city, and so the firms that tend to do well here are the forward-looking ones that can attract the best talent.

"Because living costs here are so much lower than they are in London, firms are able to stay competitive without compromising on quality of representation. This makes the city particularly attractive to law firms of any size.

In short, anyone looking for a training contract will find themselves working in a great environment that really offers a lot to young professionals - I've been here 20 years and have never looked back!"

Thea Hughes is a partner at Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice LLP, one of Wales' top family law firms. Originally from the Midlands, she began her career at the Cardiff branch of Eversheds before teaming up with four of her family law pals to set up their own firm.

SAME-SEX civil partnerships are less likely to break up in Wales than marriages, figures have suggested.

Statistics have shown that while a quarter of marriages end in divorce within five years, just 3.2% of civil partnerships have been dissolved since they were introduced in December 2005.

More than a third of Wales' 1,447 civil partnerships took place in 2006, shortly after they were introduced, yet only 47 break-ups have been made final.

Figures earlier this year showed that the rate of ceremonies was slowing following an initial flurry of long-standing couples who wanted to make their relationships official.

Denise Knowles, a relationship counsellor for charity Relate, said many same-sex couples who tied the knot in recent years have been more focused on commitment because they had long anticipated the legal change.

She said: "I think a lot of couples that decided to go down the civil partnership route are couples that are committed to each other and had been longing for some kind of legal recognition."

"I don't think anyone gets married in the belief that in five years' time they will get divorced, otherwise nobody would get married."

"I do think marriage is still an alternative if you like. A lot of people will have lived together for a long time and if the relationship isn't working so well, they think if they get married maybe it will improve, or if they are considering starting a family."

She said the motivation was different for civil partnerships.

"People are entering into them because they desperately want to, not because they feel they ought to."

Dr Ann Thomas, of the British Psychological Society, said: "It might be that the couples that had got married had been waiting for a long, long time. They could have been in very stable relationships and this was the opportunity at last to do it, so the first cohort of people may have been the kind of people who have been desperate to be together."

David James, of Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice in Cardiff, said: "Civil partnerships have become an accepted part of our society, although a consequence of this is that we deal with civil partnership dissolution on a regular basis at these offices."

Our Elizabeth Williams was featured in a fashion piece in the Western Mail's WM supplement on 14th September.

Elizabeth allowed style guru Suzanne Jaya full access to her wardrobe, and over the course of the resulting photo shoot she received plenty of advice on what to wear this autumn season!

As a child, Melanie Hamer loved to watch Crown Court on a black and white TV with her grandparents, now she runs her own law firm. WM's Emily Woodrow talks to the divorce lawyer about achieving "more than she imagined possible"

Growing up in Aberdare, Melanie Hamer had a very happy childhood.

Her parents, dad John, a painter, and mum Audrey, who worked for the local council, didn’t have a huge amount of money, but what they did have they spent on her and her younger sister Deborah rather than material things for themselves.

“This meant when the ice cream van came round on a Sunday we were allowed something, whereas our friends weren’t”, says Melanie.

She lived in a typical terraced Valleys house surrounded by her friends, but as her mother worked, she spent her school holidays with her grandparents, which is where her dreams of becoming a lawyer began.

The 45-year-old says: “We used to watch Crown Court together on a black and white television and I was fascinated by it, so by the age of 13 I’d decided that was what I wanted to do, despite coming from a very working class background and having no lawyers in my family.

“I worked very hard in school. I wasn’t the perfect pupil, and talking too much often resulted in me having to sit at the front with the teacher, but I always got good grades when it really mattered.

“When I applied to university to do law, someone suggested I was aiming too high. I don’t think they realised I would rise to the challenge, but I was determined that this was what I wanted to do.

“I’m a great believer of covering every angle, and as I wasn’t wholly convinced I’d get the grades for university, I’d managed to get myself a job in Lloyds bank in Merthyr Tydfil as a back-up.

"I was due to start work on the Monday, but when I got my results on the Thursday before, I had to call them and say I wouldn’t need the job.

“I think my mum wanted me to take the job so I could stay at home, but I know she was proud of me for going to university.

"She wasn’t the sort of mum who would say so, but when she died of cancer in 2002, I had to go through her papers looking for a will and I came across every press cutting there’d ever been about me and my professional life – that spoke volumes to me.

“My dad however is incredibly verbal about his pride and will tell anyone he speaks to at any given opportunity what I now do for a living, sometimes to my embarrassment.”

She adds: “Choosing where to study was hard.

"All my friends were going to Swansea and that was where I wanted to go as I’d holidayed there during my childhood and loved the idyllic lifestyle it offered, but they didn’t do law so I couldn’t go.

“I initially wanted to go to Southampton and Aberystwyth was only my fourth choice, but when I went to visit I fell in love with it.

"I went to Aberystwyth knowing no-one and having never lived away from home before and that was daunting, but in hindsight it was good, because I had no choice but to make friends very quickly.”

Melanie’s years at university were some of the best of her life. Having come from an all girls’ school, she enjoyed being able to have boys who were just friends and she grew close to a number of Irish students who she claims had “an incredible sense of humour and a great knowledge of how to party”.

From there, she went to Guildford Law School, which she confesses was a complete culture shock.

“The majority of other students there had come from Oxford or Cambridge, and they were nowhere near as friendly as the ones I was used to”, she admits.

“They had great difficulty understanding my accent and a number of them were quite condescending saying they didn’t even know there was a university in Aberystwyth.

“It was only when I started coming top of the class that they'd invite me to parties.

"It was almost like I had to prove myself before they would accept me.”

Melanie then returned to Cardiff to start a training contract with Phillips and Buck, now Eversheds, and Daryl, the man who was to become her husband whom she’d met at University, went with her.

She had previously managed to get an interview at a London firm, despite careers advisors telling her it was difficult to get work there, but she chose not to go, as she knew that wasn’t where she wanted to be.

“I just wanted to prove them wrong”, she adds. “I’m like that. Whenever someone tells me something is difficult, I go the extra mile to achieve it.”

She claims it was much easier to get law jobs back then as less people went to University or did their Law Society finals, so there was much less competition – unlike today when she receives 500 applications for one training position.

“It was the Thatcher years so everyone worked very hard”, says Melanie, who now lives in Pentyrch, Cardiff.

“I remember feeling lucky if I got home by 7.30pm in time to watch EastEnders.

“I was on a starting salary of about £6,500 a year, which seemed like a fortune compared to the £1.50 per hour that I’d earned working at a hotel during university.”

While working in the law department there, she dreamt of opening the first niche family law practice in Wales, and that dream became a reality when Eversheds decided they wanted to concentrate on their commercial side.

As a result, Melanie and the rest of the family department co-founded their own firm, Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice.

The mother-of-two says: “From being in a commercial practice I’d seen what needed to be done to be successful, but I didn’t realise quite how much time and effort goes into running your own business.

"It’s hard work, but I can safely say the benefits by far outweigh the burdens.

“And my job also makes me realise how lucky I am to have my husband Daryl and my two children, Sam, 11, and Katie, six.

In my early days of divorce work, I heard some awful stories, and I remember saying to Daryl, "You would never do x, y and z would you?" and needing reassurance.

"But after a while I got to the stage where I realised in my job I was only seeing sad relationships, and for every one of those there were two that were happy.

“I think we’ve both changed a lot since then, but thankfully in the same direction.

"We both always liked children, but we decided we wanted to have all the far flung holidays and enjoy each other first before committing to them.

“When I had Sam, my mum was still alive, so I knew I could always rely on her for childcare, but she died of breast cancer in 2002, aged 65."

"I threw myself into work as it gave me something to concentrate on other than the catastrophe going on around me – I think it was actually my saving grace.

“It took my mind off reality, and it was wonderful to be able to pick up files and do my job.

"I knew if I sat at home, I would just be in my bed crying, and that would be a waste of my time and against what my mother would’ve wanted.”

She adds: “Sam was just three when it happened so I’m not sure he really grasped what was going on."

"He had an incredible bond with his gran, and I remember him being really upset one day when we had to leave her in hospital overnight."

"He was crying saying, "I want gran", and I was just thinking, "I want my mum".

“My dad’s never got over it, and I don’t think he ever will.”

Talking about her children, Melanie admits her daughter Katie is very determined like her and won’t take ‘no’ for an answer.

“She will keep on and on until she gets what she wants – she’s definitely a little clone of me.

"She’s a real tomboy though, and unlike me she wants to be a builder when she grows up.

“Sam is more like Daryl and a lot of the endearing qualities that attracted me to Daryl are reflected in my son.

"He has his sights set on being an astronaut or Formula One driver, but really I think he just wants a job that will make him enough money to buy a fast car.

“If either of them wanted to follow in my footsteps, I wouldn’t discourage them, as it’s a fascinating, rewarding career and I absolutely love it, but it is tough, and Sam often sees me having to work in the evenings. I just want them to be happy.

“I’m completely over the top and full of praise for them. I tell them every single day at least 10 times how much I love them and how wonderful they are and they reciprocate.

"Every night before bed, Katie and I say to each other, "I love you up to the moon, up to the stars, up to Jupiter, up to Mars and back again".”

Melanie admits that through hard work, determination and surrounding herself with the right sort of people she has achieved far more than she ever imagined possible.

Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice is the largest niche family law firm in Wales and is top ranked in the independent legal research publications, Chambers and Partners and Legal 500.

On the difference between men and women in divorce proceedings, Melanie says: "I act for an equal number of men and women, but more women issue divorce proceedings than men.

"I think often it's because women like to take control of the situation and they like to be seen as the ones doing the divorcing.

"It's definitely easier to get a divorce these days, as there's not that stigma attached to it, but as far as the emotions and sadness of a marriage breakdown go, they're the same as they ever were.

"I think that most women in divorce settlements get a really good deal.

"Courts in this country seem to be the most favourable in the world when it comes to divorce settlements for women.

"A lot of women I have acted for who could issue in various countries abroad chose to issue in England and Wales because they know they will get a better deal here.

"The important thing is that a family lawyer does their best to try and take the bitterness out of the divorce for clients and remain objective."

As well as establishing her business, Melanie is also one of the founders of the South Wales Ladies Business Club, which now has nearly 700 women on their database.

She says: “There was a gap in the market for it.

"When I was a junior lawyer, I went to a number of business clubs which I found were very male dominated and I remember feeling quite intimidated and scared.”

Melanie’s plans for the future include continuing to push herself and grow the firm.

She admits she’s never been one to rest on her laurels and likes to learn at least one new thing every single day.

But alongside all the hard work, she does like to chill out now and again and give herself some much-needed ‘me’ time.

She adds: “I’m a firm believer that a healthy body equals a healthy mind so I try to go running or swimming at least twice a week.

"It’s a way of dealing with the stresses of my job, and I find life much easier to deal with after I’ve exercised.

“Juggling a business and a family is hard. You have to be incredibly organised and make lists just to get everything done.

"I always say if I was stranded on a desert island all I’d need is a pencil and paper so I could make lists – and even then I’d probably make lists of lists – so it’s nice to be able to get away from it all and black it all out, even if just for half an hour or so of exercise."

“Besides, due to the nature of my job I spend most of my day inside so it’s nice to get outdoors and enjoy the countryside.

“My perfect day would be a run before breakfast, and then a day down the beach with my family, possibly even with a latte thrown in for good measure.”

Kate Edwards, 31, is an associate solicitor at Cardiff-based Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice. A recent trip to Nepal with her father Dr Howell Edwards, 62, showed her how similar and alike they are and how close a bond they share

My dad and I have always been very close. We're incredibly similar, which sometimes means we don't see eye to eye.

We look quite alike too - minus the beard and glasses - and I think our personalities complement each other.

However, I didn't quite realise how close we were until we went trekking together in the Himalayas in March. We spent two weeks in a tent and got on really well, which I think was a surprise and relief to us both - so well in fact we've already started planning another trip next year.

He's very inspirational. When he retired we did a sky dive together, just before that he got his PhD, and he did his first marathon 18 months ago. He's also the founder of the Valleys Kids charity. He likes to push himself - when I mentioned Nepal he didn't say "Are you sure?", he just replied, "OK, let's go" - and he's always had complete and utter faith in my decisions.

Going away together was the pinnacle of our relationship, as it taught us that we're very similar but we can use that in a positive way. We both know that we have to work hard to get a good partnership, and neither of us take the other for granted - he makes sure of that.

The other day he rang and asked if he could stay at mine because he was going out with some old work colleagues. Then he asked me for a lift, and while we were in the car not only did he ask for a lift home too, but he also said he'd forgotten his wallet and could he borrow some money. He'd worked out I owe him about 2,000 lifts from when he used to taxi me around when I was a teenager so it was a complete role reversal.

In my job, I deal with a lot of single parents and children without dads and I can honestly say they are missing out. Having a father figure in your life teaches you how to deal with men in general, and you learn to appreciate the male point of view - after all, a man's perspective is very different to that of a woman.

I think my dad is remarkable. He is a man of great integrity with a strong social conscience and a sense of adventure and I look up to him very much.

It's official - Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice LLP is Cardiff's Cleverest Company!

We were the winners of Save the Children's first annual Cardiff's Cleverest Company quiz challenge in association with Real Radio.

Our crack team of quiz experts - Dianne Evans, David James, Elizabeth Williams, Claire Cooper, Pat Brooks and Steve Devereux - took home the trophy after a hard-fought night of trivia and cryptic clues at the SWALEC Stadium, beating some twenty other teams to claim the title.

We are delighted with our victory, and look forward to defending our crown at next year's event!

Our Elizabeth Williams was featured on BBC Radio Wales' Good Evening Wales show on 9th August.

Whilst on the show, Elizabeth and hosts Adrian Masters and Sian Pari Huws discussed the problems caused for children in care proceedings by delays in family courts in Wales.

A survey published today shows that more women than ever are the main breadwinner in the home, out-earning their partners. Helen Turner examines the changing shape of the traditional partnership

THE emergence of the so-called Mrs Big and her Toxic Sisterhood has been regarded by some with hostility.

But the number of female breadwinners is on the up – and they are keen to do their fair share of housework and childcare, a study reveals today.

Almost a third of women in the workplace are now earning more than their partners and a fifth earns as much, while one in 10 already has a house husband.

Responsibility has shifted in relationships due to the particularly male-hit recession, suggested the Women And Work Survey 2010, commissioned by Grazia Magazine.

The survey found the 2,000 women questioned did not wish to leave the world of work after having a child, with only 11% wanting to “stop work completely”.

Women with full-time jobs said their employment made them feel “worthwhile” (50%) and “confident” (51%).

Respondents were “realistic” about the downsides of full-time motherhood, with almost half of all full-time mothers admitting they hated “not earning their own money”, while 32% missed work itself.

More than two thirds (69%) of mothers said they still “preferred to keep their hand in at work”, with mothers of under-threes stating they “preferred to work, albeit preferably part-time” (60%), rather than be a “full-time mum.” (40%).

Despite the emergence of the so called ‘Mrs Big’, the survey identified she was now part of a ‘cross-over couple’ where partners shared the load and were not bound by traditional ideas.

Four out of 10 women thought that in future, the career of whoever was the higher earner would take precedence, regardless of sex (42%), and a further 39% felt mothers and fathers would share the work and childcare load equally.

However, the survey also pinpointed a worrying new battleground emerging between parents and the child-free.

Nine out of 10 women said child-free workers resented the flexi-hours and time off mothers can have, while 71% said other women were their harshest critics in the workplace and a third of female directors thought “mothers are less productive”.

More than half of all working women thought mothers’ employment rights might be putting employers off hiring women (53%) and 74% of female directors thought this was now the case.

But rather than backtracking on rights, they would rather give working fathers the same rights as working mothers (52%) to prevent any discrimination.

Jane Bruton, editor of Grazia Magazine said: “We’re in the middle of a huge social shift. Women are increasingly earning as much or more than their partners and many of these women get a great amount out of their working lives.

“For many of these high earners it makes more sense for their partners to take on a greater domestic role.

“Of course, there are going to be mixed feelings about this, but it is definitely something that is becoming more accepted.”

She added: “The Toxic Sisterhood is souring the workplace for women. Many resent what they see as ‘special treatment’ of working mothers. It’s a depressing picture because if we don’t want to exclude a whole generation of women from the workplace, we need to work with each other, not against each other.”

Kate Edwards is an Associate at Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice LLP in Cardiff and is the main breadwinner in her Tongwynlais home.

Since her partner Rhys Lambert was made redundant last September, the pay gap between them has widened. He has been working in Swansea since April.

Ms Edwards, who said she had always earned a bit more, thinks the gap is about £15,000.

“We have talked about it because when he took this job the salary was going to be less. He needed to go back to work for lots of different reasons – for self-esteem. He was getting so bored. We needed him to get back to work for practical reasons and it’s a job that he enjoys. So the pay is irrelevant, really.

“We are both happy. We have got an allotment. It tends to be his domain, I cook whatever he makes. We go away for the weekend, have people over for dinner.”

But Ms Edwards, 31, knows the balance could shift the other way.

“To be honest, the idea is that if I were to have children, that is when he has to support me. He’s not got an issue with it.

Mr Lambert, 32, who has known his partner since their schooldays in Pontypridd, said: “It’s a good balance – it’s not an ideal balance but it’s a good balance.

“I understood when we got together that her potential pay was going to be a lot more than my potential pay in the long run. I am completely OK with it.”

Early legal planning can help ease some of the future financial and practical challenges of dementia, writes Jane Chesterman from Cardiff-based Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice

Dementia affects thousands of people in Wales every year, with symptoms ranging from loss of memory and mood changes to difficulty reading or speaking. It can be caused by a number of conditions including Alzheimer’s disease and suffering a stroke, and the symptoms of dementia worsen over time.

People suffering from dementia can often need help making life manageable and enjoyable; this can be something as small as lending a sympathetic ear, all the way through to someone needing help with washing and eating, or dealing with their financial affairs.

All too often, sadly, dementia can affect someone so badly that they are no longer capable of making their own decisions about the most important things in life, to the point that when someone needs help, they are unable to request it, or to specify who they want to help them.

The statistics show that more and more people in Wales are suffering from dementia every year. Yet from my own experience, we have been finding that few people are prepared for such a turn of events should it suddenly befall them.

Perhaps understandably, few people want to think about the prospect of living with dementia in the future, but by acting now, while they are fit and well, they will save themselves and their loved ones a potentially huge amount of stress and expense in the future if something like this should befall them.

There are some simple legal steps that people can take, right now, to put their affairs in order so that they are fully prepared if they should become incapable in the future.

The best piece of advice I could ever give someone who is worried about suffering from dementia in the future is to prepare a Lasting Power of Attorney. This is a legal document which sets out your exact wishes in the event of you becoming incapable to express them.

It can give you control over your future. Most people in Wales know they should make a Will in order to protect their property and provide for their loved ones; an LPA should ideally be prepared at the same time as a Will, and for the same good reasons.

Any of us could be involved in an accident, have a stroke or suffer from dementia in years to come; an LPA allows you to choose who will make decisions on your behalf, and what your wishes are.

Under an LPA, you appoint someone to make decisions for you, and these people – your attorneys - are under a duty to act in your best interests, considering your age, your past wishes, your beliefs and values.

The powers you can allow your attorneys range from financial decisions – operating bank accounts, writing cheques and so on – to matters affecting your personal welfare, such as dental and medical care, housing, or even refusing life-sustaining treatment.

By preparing the document, you gain some control over what happens to you, and it gives those close to you - whom you chose to appoint - the authority and power to ensure that your wishes and beliefs are observed.

Without an LPA in place, the only option for relatives of those affected is to apply to the Court of Protection for them to appoint a Court Deputy. This process can be complicated, expensive, and lengthy - it takes at least three months, and your finances will be frozen until the court makes the order. The stress and expense of going through this process is often the last thing people need to deal with, on top of coping with a relative or loved one suffering from dementia.

Even at the end of the application procedure, there is no way of guaranteeing who the court will decide to appoint to look after your affairs; their choice may not necessarily be the person you yourself would have chosen to have this kind of control over your life.

The only way you can choose who will make decisions for you in the future, should you be affected, is to prepare an LPA.

By planning ahead in this way, and setting out your wishes like this, the loss of mental capacity does not have to mean the loss of control.

Once the legal issues have been taken care of, people facing the prospect of living with dementia can at least be sure that their wishes will be considered, and that their voice will be heard.

Jane Chesterman is a legal expert at Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice of Cardiff. For more information about living with dementia and Dementia Awareness Week, contact the Alzheimer's Society or visit www.alzheimers.co.uk.

A SOUTH Wales family law firm has backed a council’s drive to support the rights of parents who do not live with their children.

Thea Hughes, of Cardiff-based Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice, said a parent separated from their child was often wrongly denied the right to be consulted about major events in the child’s life.

Cardiff council is writing to public bodies across Wales urging them to treat parents equally after the city’s deputy leader Neil McEvoy won support of full council for the action.

Ms Hughes said the council’s decision was encouraging and that many public bodies misunderstood the law.

She said: “If the law recognises that you have parental responsibility, then it makes no difference who the child is actually living with, you’re still entitled to be kept up to date on how they’re doing, and to have a say in any major decisions affecting the child’s life: health, choice of school, religion and so on.”

Mothers automatically have parental responsibility, while fathers only if married to the mother at the time the child was born or if the child was born after December 2003 and he is named on the birth certificate.

Ms Hughes added: “From talking to our own clients about the experiences they have had with schools, doctors’ surgeries and the like, there seems to be a common lack of understanding among service providers when it comes to the legal rights of someone with parental responsibility.”

Engaged in April, but Charlotte Church and Gavin Henson were soon back in the headlines after ending their relationship. With two children together, Emily Woodrow asks: What happens now?

THEY seemed like the perfect couple. Two beautiful children, a stunning £800,000 house in St Brides Major, a gorgeous ring on Charlotte’s finger to herald an imminent lavish wedding, and a successful career to each of their names.

But behind closed doors, it would appear things were not so perfect.

So imperfect in fact, that after just two months of engagement, the Voice of an Angel singer and her rugby beau have decided to go their separate ways.

There’s no denying it’s a sad thing to see. A seemingly happy couple accepting things have taken a turn for the worst and being left with little choice but to split.

But as if coming to terms with losing your long-term partner isn’t enough to deal with, unmarried women who split from their boyfriends or fiances have a lot more on their plate when it comes to the legal side of the situation.

Divorce lawyer Melanie Hamer admits that although Charlotte should have no financial issues post-split, this is one area where unmarried women can really lose out.

She said: “With a married couple, even if the marriage was only short and there were no children, a wife who earns far less than her husband can apply to the courts to reach a financial settlement and even ask for spousal maintenance.

“Her chances of success, and the amount she will be awarded if she is successful, will vary from case to case, but the framework is there.

“An unmarried partner cannot claim maintenance for themselves.

“In my experience, many people in Wales believe that if they have been living with a partner for a couple of years or so, they become a ‘common law’ husband or wife, with the same rights as married couples.

“Unfortunately, there is no such thing. Similarly, others believe that by having a child together they acquire legal rights, but this is again not the case.

“The fact is that unmarried couples in England and Wales have significantly less rights and responsibilities than those who are married or in a civil partnership.”

It’s never easy having to break bad news to someone, least of all a vulnerable woman who has just been flung into the single life, perhaps against her own will.

And Ms Hamer confesses that telling an unmarried woman with no children who hasn’t contributed to a property that she has no financial claims is one of the hardest parts of her job.

“I’ve had many cases where such women have come to see me with high expectations of their financial claims against their ex-partner, and naturally they’ve become distraught when I tell them the reality of the situation,” she says.

“Such women can find themselves living like a princess one day, and like a pauper the next.

“Once they’re aware of their lack of rights, they’re incredibly vulnerable, and often will do almost anything their former partner wants to keep them sweet and make ends meet.

“This can be very disheartening for such women.

“I had one client who was completely controlled financially by her very wealthy partner – and had to ask him for money all the time – even money for a pair of knickers.”

Ms Hamer says there are also many instances of wealthy men with much younger partners with no financial security and these “trophy girlfriends” are extremely vulnerable, especially if they have no children together.

And she says women should be wary of men being fully aware of this.

While most women are proud of their independence, she believes there are plenty who can’t say the same, and it’s those women who need to look out.

The partner at Cardiff-based Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice adds: “In many ways, it appears Charlotte is in a different situation to a lot of women I speak to in the course of my work, in that it appears her financial standing is probably stronger than Gavin's.

“Although it’s very sad that they have split up with two young children, from a family lawyer’s point of view, Charlotte’s had a lucky escape, as Gavin has no claims against her for himself.

“Even with the reports of Gavin going back to playing full-time rugby, I would still be surprised if Charlotte were to state she needed any financial support from him.

“In Charlotte and Gavin's case, had they married, Gavin would have had financial claims against Charlotte for himself. Had they decided to marry, Charlotte would have been a prime candidate to have a pre-nuptial agreement to protect her assets wherever possible."

So what issues will the pair have to take into consideration with regards to Ruby, two and Dexter, one?

“If a child was born after December 1, 2003, and the father is named on the birth certificate, he automatically gets parental responsibility, and a say in any major decisions affecting the child’s life.

“As Charlotte and Gavin’s children were both born after that date, Gavin will have an equal say in their upbringing, including, for example, which schools they attend in the future.

“One area where unmarried women do have equal rights as married women is when it comes to maintenance for the children. Even though Charlotte is a very wealthy woman, there would be nothing preventing her applying to the Child Support Agency for maintenance from Gavin.”

When it comes to contact with the children, Ms Hamer advises clients that it’s far better if a system can be agreed between the parties, keeping everything as amicable as possible.

She says: “Following a separation, it is often the mother who then has the main responsibility for the upbringing of the children.

“This can be extremely difficult – especially if the mother is a working mum.”

Prior to separation she may quite easily have been able to phone up her partner at short notice and ask him to collect the children from school if she is stuck in work, following separation he may not be as amenable as before.

“A working mum with main care and responsibility for the children can therefore find she runs herself ragged,” she says.

“But for a lot of unmarried couples who live together and then separate, the biggest stumbling block is often what happens to the house.

“This can become very complicated, and can lead to a lot of stress and anxiety for women who have split from their partners.

“How the property is owned, and in whose names it was registered, can make all the difference in the world.

“Where both parties have enough money to suitably house themselves it’s usual for the couple to decide between themselves what to do with a jointly-owned property, perhaps with one party buying the other out.

“There have already been reports in the press of Charlotte buying a beautiful alternative house for Gavin close to the children,” she says.

“However, it’s not always that simple. Many couples cannot come to such an agreement, especially if the money just isn’t there for it.

“In such a case, I would always urge both parties to look at their borrowing capacity, contact their mortgage lenders or anything else they can do to raise the money, such as seeking family support.

“Otherwise, if no agreement is possible, then an application can be made to court to resolve matters – though this should always be the last resort.”

Melanie believes the law which governs property claims between cohabitees when they separate is cumbersome, messy, and badly in need of reform.

If the parties own a property together in joint names, it is not feasible to “force” an ex-partner out of a house they legally own, except in extreme circumstances, and is therefore possible for a couple to be “stuck” living under the same roof – though in this situation common sense often prevails.

“Something that often comes up is that even if one party moves out, if their name is on the mortgage they are still liable to make payments. Similarly, if the party moving out was always responsible for paying things like utility bills, it can create problems if they no longer feel they should be doing so if they are no longer living at the property.

“I advise couples in this situation to sit down together and agree who will be paying for what, and to draw up an agreement in writing if possible.

“Splitting up can be a fraught and difficult time and the last thing anyone needs are arguments over who pays the water bill.”

She adds: “I hope Gavin and Charlotte resolve their situation in an amicable and dignified manner for the sake of their children. No matter what has happened between them, they will both be parents of Ruby and Dexter for the rest of their lives.”

The high-profile couple are now reportedly even considering living under the same roof, as singletons. Melanie hopes it’s a temporary arrangement and adds: “The early dignified silence on their part regarding the ending of their relationship looks promising. I wish them both all the best for their futures.” So do we.

Advice:

1. Always try and agree a framework when it comes to organising contact with the children. Keep everything as amicable as possible.

2. When it comes to agreeing what happens to your joint accommodation, examine your borrowing capacity, get in touch with your mortgage lenders and do anything else that you can to raise the money, such as seeking family support.

3. Seek legal advice as soon as possible; the lawyer will then be able to go through the options with you and give advice tailored to your particular situation. And remember, applying to the courts to resolve matters should always be the last resort.

NEARLY 15,000 more children in Wales are receiving child maintenance payments than five years ago.

Official figures from the Child Support Agency show 78% of children who are eligible for support are now receiving payments, up from 62% in 2005, with nearly 50,000 children who are living in separated families in Wales now receiving child maintenance.

Only one in five parents with a liability for child maintenance failed to make a payment during the three months to March 2010, compared to more than a third failing to take financial responsibility for their sons or daughters five years ago.

A willingness by the Child Support Agency, part of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission, to take tough enforcement action against parents who fail to take financial responsibility for their children may be behind the increase in payments, according to experts.

Steve Harrison, the senior legal enforcement team leader for Wales, said: “It’s a growing area for the agency where an aim is to get to people who are not prepared to pay for their children much quicker, getting them to make regular payments.

“We’ve been able to deal with more cases. There’s less chance of people evading us.

“It is having a change to the culture – as the man down the pub says ‘They took my house off me’.

“It does contribute to the idea you can’t evade paying for your children.”

Enforcement action generally starts when letters and phone calls asking for child maintenance have been ignored. Steps include deductions from earnings, bailiff action and bank accounts been frozen.

During the past year five people in Wales have been sent to prison for not paying their child maintenance and a further 55 people received suspended sentences.

Five non-resident parents could be forced to sell their homes if they do not comply with orders to pay arrears they owe their children. In one case, a non-resident parent living near Cardiff was forced to sell their home to raise £10,500 for their children.

Mr Harrison said: “A lot of people realise if they’re about to lose their home, or a second home, they’re in the last-chance saloon as far as the Child Support Agency is concerned.

“During the 18 months that we’ve been using these orders, we’ve referred about 450 cases across the UK but we’ve only had to take possession of a handful of homes.”

Changes to the way the child maintenance system works have meant that from April this year parents claiming out-of-work benefits have been able to keep all of their child maintenance without it affecting the amount of benefits they receive.

Since October 2008, parents who are on benefits are no longer compelled to use the Child Support Agency and have the choice of setting up a private arrangement instead.

A free national information and support service Child Maintenance Options was also launched to help parents make informed choices about child maintenance.

A CSA spokesman said the scheme was receiving about 1,000 calls a day and had led to the setting up of 60,000 private maintenance arrangements.

He said: “We’ve got examples of dads who’ve been able to re-establish a better relationship with their children because they’re providing for them voluntarily.”

From 2011, the agency will introduce a new statutory maintenance scheme, based on latest available tax year information from Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs.

But Rhian Howells, partner at Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice, said the experience of the firm’s clients was that the changes were having little impact on the ground.

She said: “A lot of our clients have had a bad experience.

“They’re taking a long time and they’re still making mistakes with the calculations.”

We ask the women of Wales which prize possessions they trasure most. This week: Melanie Hamer, 44, is a partner at Cardiff-based Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice. She lives in Pentyrch, Cardiff.

• I started to wear glasses when I was studying for my law degree finals in 1986. At the time I had huge Deirdre Barlow-style ones that used to pinch on my nose and my ears. I now wear daily disposable contact lenses that I pop in first thing in the morning and then take out last thing at night before I go to sleep. I actually forget I have bad eyesight with these.

• As a busy divorce lawyer and mother of two young children there are never enough hours in the day - time is my most precious commodity. My hands-free mobile kit means I can conduct business in my car to and from work, thereby saving some precious time.

• I have been completely converted to an automatic car since February last year. With the increased traffic in Cardiff during rush hour, I was finding the manual gearbox and clutch control quite exhausting. With the automatic car, it almost drives itself.

• I never go to bed early enough and Touche Eclat is fabulous at masking the shadows under my eyes - apparently all the top models wear it. I don't wear foundation and therefore Touche Eclat is invaluable.

• A number of years ago my husband bought me a Mont Blanc fountain pen for Christmas. The ink flows freely and never scratches the paper. In court we have to write very quickly to keep up with the judge and this pen just glides over the paper enabling me to write more speedily and legibly.

Welsh lawyers are trying a new approach to give separating couples the opportunity to avoid courtroom dramas. Thea Hughes, a partner with Cardiff firm Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice, gives the lowdown on this groundbreaking development

FOR years now, if a couple in Wales needed legal assistance to sort out a problem between them, there has been one main course of action.

Each party would instruct solicitors to fight for their interests, often ending in a court battle which left everyone feeling confrontational and alienated. Many cases do not go as far as court, but even when solicitors thrashed out agreements and settlements between themselves, couples could feel disconnected from the process, or find themselves lacking closure.

Now, thanks to ideas developed in the US and Canada, there is another way.

Called “collaborative law”, this new approach calls for disputing couples or families to work together to resolve their issues. Rather than engaging a solicitor to fight on your behalf, in collaborative law you sit down with your solicitor, your former partner and their solicitor, and commit to sorting it out together, however long it takes.

It’s not like counselling or marriage guidance – the lawyers are there to help you reach a settlement and move on with your lives – but it can make a huge difference to do things this way.

Collaborative law is a whole new way of thinking. It could prove to be a quiet revolution in the way Welsh people think about resolving family legal disputes.

Some lawyers in England have been trialling this service for the past two years. The results have been remarkable – defying sceptics who claimed this approach was too American and couldn’t work in Britain, or who couldn’t believe a couple could reach any kind of agreement just by talking things through. Instead, collaborative lawyers have helped thousands of couples in England deal with their difficulties in a professional and amicable manner.

Now, a group of Welsh lawyers is ready to bring the same service to couples in Wales. This is the start of a new era for people in Wales who want an alternative to the traditional adversarial approach to sorting out family legal problems.

Anyone in Wales can benefit from this new collaborative law option: married couples going through a divorce, unmarried couples dealing with separation, civil partners seeking to dissolve their partnerships, or parents or grandparents trying to formalise contact or residence for children.

No matter what the problem, the collaborative approach remains the same: each party instructs a specially-trained collaborative lawyer, and then everyone sits down together and commits to resolving their differences.

The members of Collaborative Lawyers in Wales are all qualified solicitors with many years’ experience, drawn from a number of top firms across Wales. The difference is that unlike regular solicitors and barristers, collaborative lawyers are also specifically trained in working constructively and compassionately to help couples reach agreement.

Of course, this approach isn’t for everyone. Some separations and divorces are so bitter or messy that there is no chance of both parties agreeing to try to resolve their differences through a collaborative process, let alone that process being able to help them in a constructive way.

Also, although the collaborative approach might appeal to some couples as a more “grown-up” way to deal with disputes, it should not be thought of as the “easy option”. For the collaborative approach to work, both parties need to start out with the right mindset: instead of seeing it as a fight with their former partner, they need to be willing to work together with them to settle their differences. This is clearly not appropriate in every situation, and so some couples might find that collaborative law simply isn’t right for them.

However, if a couple feels the collaborative route might work for them, it can be very effective indeed. Couples in England who have tried doing things this way often report back that they have managed to sort out all of their issues and still successfully remain friends with their former partners; few believed such a result would have been possible with a traditional solicitors’ agreement or court hearing.

This approach has also proven to work extremely well for the children of separating couples, who are spared the difficulty of seeing their parents arguing and can benefit hugely from knowing that their parents are working out their differences together.

I am proud to be one of the pioneers of this new approach here in Wales. Hopefully our ability to provide this service will lead to more Welsh families resolving their differences amicably.

A SOUTH Wales law firm founded by a Cynon Valley woman is continuing to expand.

Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice has appointed a new trainee solicitor and its first marketing administrator.

Trainee solicitor Julia Taylor spent time studying in the Czech Republic before completing her Legal Practice Course at the College of Law, York. The Cardiff-based practice has also appointed Steve Devereux as its first marketing administrator.

The practice was co-founded by Melanie Hamer, of Godreaman, in 1996, as the first law firm in Wales dedicated solely to family law.

It is now one of the largest specialist family law firms in the UK.

"The fact that we have continued to grow as a firm, in this climate, is testament to the quality of the service we provide," said Miss Hamer.

CHILDREN of divorced parents are not being put off getting married themselves, according to a new survey.

More than eight out of 10 young women polled said they still wanted to tie the knot in spite of their parents' relationship breakdowns, with the average respondent hoping to do so at 26.

The results of the Marriage and Wedding Survey, commissioned by More Magazine, has prompted a Welsh family law firm to suggest the damage of divorce is over-estimated.

Some 78% of the 2,000 women surveyed in their mid-20s saw marriage as the ultimate commitment above having a baby or buying a house with a partner and felt it should be "for life", while six out of 10 thought it was important to be married before having children.

And in sharp contrast to opinions a decade ago, when women wanted to be older when they wed, the survey said women would ideally like to marry at 26 and have their first child at 27.

The results are at odds with data published in February by the Office for National Statistics, which revealed the provisional number of marriages registered in 2008 was the lowest in Wales and England since 1895.

Thea Hughes, a partner with Cardiff-based Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice, said: "First of all, I think the figures show that divorces, if they are handled well, don't have to negatively impact on the children's lives. Perhaps they have seen that it's not the end of the world.

"Secondly, I think women are becoming more aware that marriage provides more protection than simply living together."

Terry Prendergast, chief executive of Marriage Care, which has counselling centres in Swansea, Cardiff, Newport and Wrexham, said: "It's an encouraging response. When research was done by [York University professor] Kathleen Kiernan in 2000, the suggestion was that a large number of young people were not marrying because they were frightened of what happened when their own parents divorced.

"What's crucial when parents divorce is how that divorce happens, how the children feel during the divorce, whether they are part of the problem or used as weapons, or the parents are sufficiently grounded to deal with their own separation and ensure that their children are still their children. Maybe they had a good experience of their parent's divorce.

"There has been concern again from the Government, from charities and our own organisations about the decline in the number of marriages over the years. What's interesting is, what is being reported about young people sits in opposition to this report, which suggests people are aspiring to do something different."

A spokeswoman for the Church in Wales said: "No-one walking down the aisle expects their marriage to end in divorce. Unfortunately, however, many have an unrealistic idea of what it really means to commit your life to someone else and it's only once the romance of the honeymoon has faded that the real commitment begins.

"It's heartening to see that so many young women surveyed still have faith in marriage. It's important that they see beyond the wedding, the dreams of walking down the aisle, to the reality of keeping the vows they make when times get tough.

"Many churches hold courses for couples thinking of getting married and they can also offer help and support for couples going through difficult times."

Raye Saunders, the Diocesan president of Llandaff Mothers' Union, said: "Mother's Union is committed to marriage and believes that this is the best way of cementing relationships and building family life. So we are delighted that the survey shows that young women have kept faith in marriage."

As Denise Van Outen admits she hates the thought of her husband looking at her and thinking, "What did I marry?", WM's Emily Woodrow asks two Welsh women, have their standards slipped since you tied the knot? YES, says Dianne Evans, head of the wills and probate department at Cardiff-based Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice, 56

I've been happily married for 26 years, and I'm happy to admit I've let things slip in terms of my appearance. I take pride in how I look, but I'm not a heavy make-up wearer.

I went through a Dusty Springfield phase in the '60s where I would coat myself in products, but more often than not it would get washed off by my father.

I'm comfortable wearing minimal amounts of make-up and my husband is happy with it because he knows it makes me more comfortable. People say to me, "Don't you moisturise?", but I've come from a soap and water generation.

Some of my friends own seven mascaras, but I simply wouldn't know how to cope with that. I have one small make-up bag with a mascara and a lip gloss in it, and that's even less than it used to contain before I was married.

If I'm not working, I won't go near make-up and I won't even take it on holiday with me. My husband David is so used to seeing me devoid of anything, I'm not sure he'd even notice if I put any on. I'm so comfortable around him I don't need to make an effort. I know he loves me as I am, warts and all.

I can fall out of bed at 7am and if I'm going to the beach to walk the dog I won't bother showering until I get back - if I brush my hair I'm doing well.

I've even been known to wear pyjama bottoms under my waterproofs when it's really cold.

In my opinion it's more important to get out there and see what the day has to offer rather than sitting in and making up your face.

I like to think if there were any problems David would tell me. If I completely went down hill and stopped washing, the first thing he would say to me is, "You need a wash."

As you get older, your priorities slip and for me, my appearance is bottom of the list. It's nice to have time to myself, but I was happy to put that on a back-burner in order to bring up our children. There are times when you think, "Do I take them to their ice skating lesson or shall I sit in the bath and shave my legs?", but for me there's no contest.

When I have free time I just want to get out in the fresh air. Going out and seeing wildlife is my life, not deciding what colour eye shadow to put on.

It never fails to amaze me when people say they won't come downstairs without their face on. I couldn't bear the fact I'd have to spend an hour in the morning getting ready, that time would be wasted for me. My worst nightmare would be a makeover.

I guess it all boils down to that age old question: does beauty come from within or is it painted on?

I accept there's a lot of pressure for people to look good, but personally, I live my life by the phrase, "This is me, take me as I am."

Why should we be embarrassed for being who we are? I think we should praise people for being au naturel. I run around during the week so the weekends are my time to chill out and that involves no make-up and pure comfort.

WENDY HOPKINS Family Law Practice has continued its expansion with the appointment of a new trainee solicitor and its first ever marketing administrator.

The firm, which is Wales' largest family law practice, has appointed trainee solicitor Julia Taylor, a graduate of Aberystwyth University, who spent time studying in the Czech Republic before completing her legal practice course at the College of Law, York.

She has joined the firm from Co-op Legal Services where she worked as a litigation assistant. Julia has also worked as a volunteer for the Citizens' Advice Bureau.

The Cardiff-based practice has also appointed Steve Devereux as its first marketing administrator.

Mr Devereux, a Cardiff graduate who previously ran his own business in the music industry before completing the bar vocational course, has been recruited to help continue the firm's strong growth.

The practice, co-founded by partner Melanie Hamer in 1996 as the first law firm in Wales dedicated solely to family law, is now one of the largest specialist family law firms in the UK.

The expansion comes on the back of an extremely successful year for the practice, which again received a top ranking in both Chambers & Partners and the Legal 500.

Miss Hamer said: "The fact we have continued to grow as a firm even in the current financial climate is testament to the quality of the service we provide, and bringing Julia and Steve into our team will help us to maintain that quality and growth as we go forward."

A million-pound expansion of Assembly Government efforts to prevent violence against women will clamp down on forced marriage in Wales.

The new strategy, announced yesterday, was welcomed by campaigners and will work to stop honour-based violence and end female genital mutilation.

Training will also be provided so staff working in refuges will be able to help women take control of their finances. In addition, new efforts will be made to ensure the safety of women on trains and at stations.

Social Justice minister Carl Sargeant unveiled the six-year Right to be Safe strategy in Llanelli and acknowledged “more needs to be done”. Each year in the UK 80,000 women experience rape or attempted rape.

The action plan states the Assembly Government will “not shy away from tackling culturally sensitive issues such as forced marriage and female genital mutilation which are not acceptable in our society”.

The Wales Violence Against Women Action Group – which includes Amnesty International and Welsh Women’s Aid – applauded the strategy but wanted it to go further.

Its demands include:

• A comprehensive strategy to assist perpetrators and reduce re-offending;
• the inclusion of the full range of issues relating to violence against women in the school curriculum; and
• a stronger emphasis on helping black women and those from ethnic minorities.

Naomi Brightmore, chair of the action group, said: “Clearly, there are areas where we would have liked to see more progress, and we will be working with the Assembly Government to continue to press for extra services to tackle real gaps.

“We want to see real action that will impact on the lives of women in Wales, and ultimately reduce the level of violence faced by women in Wales. We are also concerned about the confusion created by the separation of domestic abuse and violence against women issues, and the lack of a gender-specific strategy that could hinder services to both men and women.”

Across Wales and England, 4.8 million women have had experience of at least one incident of domestic abuse. Kate Edwards, a solicitor at Cardiff’s Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice who regularly lectures on violence against women, said: “Working on the frontline of these cases and dealing with victims and their children in crisis makes you realise not only how valuable the services we have are but also how limited their resources are.”

A total budget of £4.4m to tackle violence will be in place this year. Annual reports will measure the incidents of forced marriage and subsequent prosecutions.

There will be an expansion in the services offered by the Wales Domestic Abuse helpline to support victims of sexual violence and a new project will be launched to tackle prostitution and trafficking in North Wales. A national training strategy will also be developed to ensure professionals working in different sectors know how to deal with violence against women and the impact on children.

Labour’s Mr Sargeant said: “We have come a long way in tackling violence against women but I recognise more needs to be done and by working with our partners we will make women and their children safer.”

Nerys Evans, a Plaid Cymru AM who has fought in the Assembly for greater attention to be given to violence against women, said: “It is clear from the strategy published today that the Welsh Government listened to the responses to the consultation stage and has taken these on board and has made several appropriate changes to the draft strategy. There is a massive amount of work to be done on this issue.”

She said that for progress to be made it was essential that education, health and housing departments played a full role and that the Assembly Government worked with London-based based bodies, the courts and the police.

New legislation means child minders in Wales must now be registered. Selena Masson speaks to Thea Hughes of Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice.

The Children and Families (Wales) Measure 2010, which was partly enacted on 10 February 2010, has made new provisions for the eradication of child poverty in Wales.

The Measure makes provision about child minding and day care for children, establishing integrated family support teams and boards and improving standards in social work for children and people who care for them. It also makes provision about assessing the needs of children where their parents need community care services or have health conditions which affect the needs of the children.

Child care law specialist Thea Hughes is a partner at Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice LLP, which is based in Cardiff. She says: “The regulation sets out broad aims to be met by Welsh Ministers, which relate to the way in which contributions are to be made to the eradication of child poverty.”

Hughes says she welcomes the legislation: “The broad aims are in themselves to be applauded, but it remains to be seen how the Welsh Ministers’ strategy will take on board the same. Indeed, the obligation on the Welsh Ministers is to publish a strategy which must set out its objectives which relate to only one or more of the 13 broad aims set out in the regulations. There appears, therefore, to be a very wide discretion for the Welsh Ministers to meet some—but by no means all—of the broad aims.”

However, Hughes adds the publication of this legislation has raised questions over how it will actually be delivered. “In due course, local authorities will have a duty to provide free child care for prescribed children under compulsory school age. There is no mention within the regulations of how this will be funded, nor indeed the funding of other duties which will be placed upon the local authorities.”

Other duties include assessing the sufficiency of play opportunities in the area, and the establishment of integrated family support teams to whom the local authority may refer a family if it reasonably suspects or believes a parent may be dependent upon alcohol or drugs, or is a victim of domestic abuse, has a history of violent or abusive behaviour, or has a mental disorder. “All of these duties appear to be laudable, but there will always be concern that the already-stretched resources of local authorities will have even further obligations to meet,” says Hughes.

So what do child care lawyers need to be aware of? “Lawyers should familiarise themselves with all the new duties which are being imposed upon local authorities, and how those duties will affect case management conferences and care proceedings generally,” says Hughes.

Hughes concludes: “Of particular importance for lawyers will be the local authorities’ obligation to make such arrangements as it considers suitable to promote and facilitate participation by children in decisions of the authority which might affect them. There may therefore be the opportunity for more representation of children once these regulations are fully in force.”

Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice is one of the best known “divorce businesses” in Wales. It was set up in 1996 with the former family law department of Eversheds. When it first started, there were just 3 lawyers and now there are 14 lawyers, 12 specialising in family law and 2 in Wills and Probate.

It has one of the largest teams of divorce lawyers in the country. Most of its lawyers are accredited specialists and are committed to resolving matters amicably for clients. The Firm also boasts one of the few Collaborative Lawyers in Wales (Thea Hughes) and a founding member of STEP. The firm is top ranked in the legal independent research publications, namely, Chambers & Partners and the Legal 500.

One of the effects of the “credit crunch” has been an increase in the number of divorces and business divorces. The senior lawyers and partners here deal with these “business divorces” – i.e. divorces involving a business which is run by a husband and wife team.

The lawyers first look to see what type of business module it is – e.g a Sole Trader or Partnership or a limited company. This is where the experience from Eversheds comes in very handy. The firm has a very commercial approach and there are many aspects to consider including the following:-

• The shareholders and the percentage shareholders
• Who are the Directors and Secretary?
• Are there employment contracts for the Directors?
Are there company pension schemes?
• If it is a partnership – is there a Partnership Deed?

Whatever has happened between the Husband and Wife, it is absolutely essential that they continue to co-operate with one another regarding the interim running of the business to preserve the business for the future – no matter who is going to end up with the business.

Aspects to consider during the interim running of the business can include the following:-

• The defined roles of the Husband and Wife in a business
• Who can sign cheques?
• The retention of the status quo
• What do the Articles of Association say?
• Is there a Shareholders Agreement?
• Is there a Partnership Agreement and what does it say?

To work out what each person will have from the divorce then often businesses need to be valued by a joint independent external accountant. The joint independent external accountant owes a duty to the court and not to either party. There are various methods of valuing the business and the accountant can advise on the most appropriate method. The accountant can also advise on the tax implications – Capital Gains Tax can be a major feature. If a business is to be transferred from a Husband to a Wife to avoid Capital Gains Tax then it is important that the transfer takes place before the end of the tax year of separation.

Once the value of the business is known then we can look at the liquidity and whether there is enough money in the Company to purchase an exiting spouse’s share now or whether it has to be purchased over a number of years or whether the shareholding or partnership will need to continue if there is no liquidity. Over the years, we have acted for all sorts of businesses in all sorts of situations. It is still rare and the exception for a Husband and Wife team to continue running a business after divorce.

As part of our job we try to get to the grass roots of the business and understand exactly how it started and how it is operated and how it has got to where it is today.

In all instances we provide innovative and bespoke solutions to complex problems with a firm but fair approach. Wherever possible we try to resolve matters amicably and avoid litigation. It is far better for the clients to reach an amicable negotiated settlement than an order imposed on them by a Judge in a court after expensive, lengthy and stressful litigation.

They are said to perform better in interviews, have better presentation, communication and motivation skills and are more thorough, affordable and able to multitask.

But despite all this women do not get top jobs because managers fear they will leave to have children, according to a new survey.

A poll of 500 bosses by TheLadders.co.uk - a careers site that only specialises in jobs with a salary of £50,000 plus - found almost half of senior management surveyed agreed that women will be denied jobs they are most suited to because of concerns over maternity leave.

Leading divorce lawyer Melanie Hamer, a partner at Cardiff-based Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice, argued she would never entertain not giving someone the right level of job just because they are female and may leave to have children.

She said: "It's quite shocking if this happens. Not all women choose to have children anyway and some women do but go back to work almost straight away."

"There are also instances where the roles are reversed and the man stays at home to look after the child."

Director and founder of JoJo Maman Bébé, Laura Tennison, said: "The reality is that women are still the primary child carers, and as a result, there's a concern for employers that they may leave to have children."

Thanks to a change in the law, thousands of couples in Wales can start families through surrogacy. Here Melanie Hamer, a partner with leading Welsh family law firm Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice, looks at what prospective parents must bear in mind when considering this option.

MORE and more married couples in Wales are turning to surrogacy as a way to fulfil their dreams of starting a family.

There has been growing support for unmarried and gay couples to enjoy the same rights. Celebrities like John Barrowman have been vocal about their desire to have a baby through surrogacy, while millions will have watched Matthew Rhys’ character “Kevin” in the hit US show Brothers and Sisters striving for that chance.

From 6th April this year, the law on surrogacy in England and Wales is changing. The changes will make it easier for people to start families in this way, but there are also new responsibilities and challenges for would-be parents to consider.

A question I am often asked is whether surrogacy is legal in this country. The short answer is “yes”, but there are restrictions which determine who can become the parents of a baby born to a surrogate mother, and how they must go about it.

Kim Cotton became the first high-profile surrogate mother in the UK in 1985, giving birth to a baby for a foreign couple in exchange for payment. Such an arrangement would be illegal today.

As the law currently stands, prospective parents over 18 who wish to have a baby via a surrogate must meet certain requirements. At least one of them must be a biological parent of the baby; at least one of them must be domiciled in the UK – and crucially, they must be married.

However, as of 6th April, the same rights will be extended to unmarried couples and civil partners, opening up new opportunities for childless couples across Wales.

These would-be parents must be careful in how they go about arranging a surrogate pregnancy. For example, it is illegal for parents to directly advertise for a surrogate, or for surrogates to advertise their services to hopeful parents.

It is also usually illegal to be paid to carry a baby, although surrogates can receive “reasonable expenses”.

Surrogates may change their mind at any time, leaving little recourse for disappointed parents; a properly-drafted surrogacy agreement can help minimise these risks. Surrogacy agreements are not binding in England and Wales, unlike some US states, but it is still important to have one in place so everyone knows where they stand.

New parents should also be aware that in the eyes of the law, the starting point is always that the woman who actually gives birth to a baby is legally considered to be the child’s mother, regardless of whether the baby was conceived via an egg donor.

Parents can now apply for a document, called a “parental order”, to get around this problem. This allows married couples – and after 6th April, unmarried couples or same-sex couples in civil partnerships – to be legally registered as a child’s parents, regardless of who physically gave birth to the baby. Once a parental order is in place, the surrogate will no longer be considered the child’s legal mother.

Restrictions still apply. A parental order will not be granted before a baby is born, or until six weeks after birth, so no-one can apply in advance to be named as a parent. However, the order must be registered within six months of a child’s birth – otherwise, the opportunity is lost forever, and the surrogate will remain registered as the baby’s mother.

Perhaps most importantly, the surrogate must also agree to come off the record as the child’s mother before a parental order can be made.

However, if a surrogate mother is married, or in a civil partnership, both she and her partner will be automatically registered as a child’s legal parents - regardless of whose eggs and sperm were used to conceive the baby - and they must both agree to relinquish their status as parents before any order will be granted.

Although the number of cases in which surrogates change their minds is statistically extremely low, there is nothing in the law to force a surrogate or her partner to agree to such an order.

This is why a well-drafted surrogacy agreement can be especially important. It is vital for anyone considering surrogacy as an option to make sure everyone involved goes in with their eyes open.

Surrogacy offers the chance of parenthood to thousands of couples in Wales, and the changes in the law will offer that chance to many thousands more, but anyone considering starting a family this way should always make sure they have the best possible advice from a qualified specialist before embarking on their momentous journey.

Partner Melanie Hamer was a featured guest on BBC Radio Wales’ popular “Jamie and Louise” phone-in show on 10th March.

During the show, Melanie discussed divorce in Wales in the 21st Century with hosts Jamie Owen and Louise Elliott, and also answered questions from members of the public on family law topics.

Cheryl and Ashley Cole need to avoid a messy split like that of Heather Mils and Paul McCartney and follow the Madonna and Guy Ritchie model of divorcing with dignity.

That is the advice of a top Welsh divorce lawyer.

Aberdare-born Melanie Hamer said the celebrity pair must get themselves "committed family lawyers" who are determined to settle the case amicably.

The singer dumped her footballer husband last week following claims the England star was unfaithful during the pair's three-and-a-half-year marriage.

Having pointedly removed her wedding ring, X Factor judge Cheryl flew home after a spell in Los Angeles, while Ashley left the couple's mansion.

Ms Hamer, 44, formerly of Godreaman, also pointed to Peter Andre and Katie Price's separation as an example of the kind of acrimonious separation the couple should avoid.

Ms Hamer, a partner at the Cardiff-based Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice, said: "Ashley and Cheryl need to take stock of what happened with Paul McCartney and Heather Mills and how wrong that went."

Singer Cheryl Cole shot to fame in the band Girls Aloud. Her solo career has seen her top the charts with Fight For This Love. She has stuck by Ashley after allegations of infidelity surfaced two years ago, but further allegations appear to have become too great a strain on the relationship.

The South Wales Ladies Business Club was launched in December 2006 by CTA member Alison Hazledine and two of her friends, Rebecca Collins of Handelsbanken and Melanie Hamer of Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice. The club was set up to provide an informal and relaxed forum to give female professionals the opportunity to build a network with like-minded ladies for the benefit of their business.

The club started with just 20 ladies and now has 550 influential businesswomen on its database. The club continues to grow, and the success is clearly attributable to there being a strong demand for business ladies to network in a relaxed and friendly forum.

Events are held in the first week of each month and there is a Gala Charity Dinner every year in January. There is usually no formal agenda, enabling ladies to maximise the time for networking, and there are no requirements for formal membership and no annual fee. Any business ladies can attend the networking events on a "pay as you go" basis.

The South Wales Ladies Business Club knows that many ladies have a busy working life, so attendance is not expected at every event and ladies are free to attend as few or as many as suits their diary.

The Club saw a gap in the market in 2007 for a female networking club as an alternative to the normal networking events, which are sometimes dominated by men. However, many of its attendees and its organisers also attend the usual mixed networking events, and this is most definitely not a feminist splinter group!

A family lawyer has become the first in Wales to be admitted as a Fellow of the International Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers - one of the profession's most prestigious worldwide organisations.

Rhian Howells, a partner with Cardiff-based Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice, has become one of just 540 Fellows of the IAML across the globe.

She said: "To be elected as a Fellow of the Academy is a personal honour, but more importantly it reflects the strength of our family law practice which has been one of the fastest-growing legal firms in Wales in recent years.

"Membership of the Academy is recognised worldwide as a stamp of approval for the quality of matrimonial services provided by a firm, while fellowship serves to underline this recognition."

Membership of the IAML is by invitation only. Lawyers who are interested in joining the Academy are asked to submit information about their legal practice, and must satisfy established criteria for membership to obtain the approval of the main board of admissions.

Since 1986, the IAML has grown steadily, both in terms of the countries represented and in terms of the overall membership.

Originally, most of the members were from the US and UK, but the number of countries now represented is 40.

Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice was founded with just three solicitors in 1996 as the first law firm in Wales devoted entirely to family law. It now has 14 fee earners.

Cheryl and Ashley Cole need to avoid a messy split like that of Heather Mills and Paul McCartney and follow the Madonna and Guy Ritchie model of divorcing with dignity, a Welsh divorce lawyer said last night.

Melanie Hamer said the pair must get themselves "committed family lawyers" who are determined to settle amicably.

The singer dumped her footballer husband on Tuesday following claims the England star was unfaithful during the pair's three-and-a-half year marriage.

Having pointedly removed her wedding ring, X Factor judge Cheryl flew home after a spell in Los Angeles, while Ashley left the couple's mansion.

Ms Hamer, 44, also pointed to Peter Andre and Katie Price's separation as an example of the kind of acrimonious separation the couple should avoid.

The lawyer, a partner at the Cardiff-based Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice, said: "They need to take stock of what happened with Paul McCartney and Heather Mills and how wrong that went."

Ms Hamer, who represented former Wales and Celtic star John Hartson during his divorce from ex-wife Lowri, added: "They should look at the Madonna and Guy Ritchie approach where it was all dealt with very quietly, without any great publicity and without any great acrimony."

The Mills-McCartney divorce was one of the most unpleasant in recent history.

Mills admitted she threw water over McCartney's lawyer, Fiona Shackleton, and described the £24.3m settlement she was awarded as "outrageous".

And following Price's bitter divorce from Andre, she recently remarried cage fighter Alex Reid, prompting Andre to break down live on Sky News while talking about his ex-wife and their two children, Junior and Princess.

For the past few days, Cheryl has been in LA, where she has been caught on camera in the regular company of dancer Derek Hough, 24, who appears in her latest video.

The singer, who topped the charts with Fight For This Love, stuck by Ashley after allegations of infidelity surfaced two years ago.

But further allegations that his phone had been used to send sexual photos to a glamour model and further "kiss and tells" appear to have become too great a strain on the relationship.

Relate Cymru manager Christine Jones said counselling could help prevent the divorce turning messy.

She said: "Quite often infidelity is an issue with divorce, but that can be handled with dignity and that is something that does present in counselling quite a lot.

“It's not just infidelity alone, it's the reasons behind it and the causes of it.”

The 29-year-old Chelsea footballer was yesterday said to have blamed the breakdown of his three-and-a-half-year marriage to Cheryl on his mother-in-law. Cheryl's mother, Joan Callaghan, 49, moved into their £6m Surrey mansion two years ago.

Cheryl Cole is already said to be looking to buy a £2.1m villa in Hollywood.

The performer, 26, has maintained a dignified silence in recent days, letting her high-profile performance at the Brit Awards a week ago, for which she had also removed her wedding band, do the talking.

Aberystwyth divorce lawyer, Alison Evans, said the separation could be done and dusted within months and the fact the couple have no children will speed up proceedings.

"Any divorce can go through in a relatively short period of time if there's consent on both sides.

"If there's nothing at issue and they agree to everything there's no need to hold the procedure up."

Girls Aloud singer Cheryl had spoken in interviews about one day wanting to start a family with her husband. Her career hit new heights thanks to her starring role on the judging panel for ITV1's The X Factor.

Her solo pop career has also flourished in recent months with the release of her debut album.

She is said to have told her husband she wanted the relationship to end in a simple text message.

The recession was blamed last night for the falling rate of divorce in Wales and England.

According to data published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), divorces decreased 5% in 2008 to 121,779 from 128,232 in 2007.

By 2008 – the fifth consecutive year divorce numbers had dropped – there had been a vast reduction from a peak of 153,176 in 2003.

It is also the lowest figure since 1975 when there were 120,522 divorces.

But the results also showed that, compared with 2007, divorce rates in England and Wales increased for men up to 39 and over 60, and for women aged 20 to 34 and 50 to 59.

For the fourth year running, both men and women in their late twenties had the highest divorce rates of all five-year age groups.

In 2008, there were 26.3 divorces per 1,000 married men aged 25 to 29 and 27.8 per 1,000 married women aged 25 to 29.

This compared with 16.8 divorces per 1,000 married men aged 45 to 49 and 14.6 per 1,000 married women aged 45 to 49 in the same year.

Results also revealed there were 106,763 children aged under 16 who were in families where the parents got divorced.

The number has fallen 29% from a decade earlier, when there were 150,129 children in the same situation.

Christine Jones, Relate services manager for Wales, said many couples had been forced to stay together because of the recession, as the slow housing market prevented them selling and dividing the proceeds.

She added: “We’ve had couples coming to counselling, who can’t afford to separate because they can’t sell the house. I think the recession’s had an impact on that.”

But divorce lawyer, Melanie Hamer, of Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice, based in Cardiff, said she anticipated a dramatic increase in divorces as the economy improves.

Ms Hamer said “There was a study done during the last big recession in America in the 1920’s.

“It was amazing how far fewer people were divorcing because of the recession”.

“Also when there’s plenty of money washing around people can go off and pursue other lifestyles and interests and possibly have relationships away from home.”

“When cash is tight they haven’t got the money to do it because they can’t afford to go out.”

Relate claims their marriage support works, with 80% of respondents to a survey who wanted to stay together saying they felt counselling helped to strengthen their relationship.

Research has also shown 50% of separated people said they felt there were things they could have done to prevent their break-up, and they wished they had done more.

Yesterday’s statistics also showed that in 2008, the divorce rate in England and Wales decreased by 2.5% to 11.5 divorcing people per 1,000 married population, compared with 11.8 in 2007.

The average age at divorce increased for both men and women in 2008.

The average age for men divorcing was 43.9 in 2008 an increase from 43.7 years in 2007.

For women this increased from 41.2 years in 2007 to 41.4 years in 2008.

The timing couldn’t be worse.

St Dwynwen’s Day it may be but for many people across Wales, divorce not devotion is on their mind.

January is the most popular month of the year for divorces and Welsh solicitors have once again seen an increase in clients.

Melanie Hamer, a partner at Cardiff-based Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice said historically January is the busiest month for divorces for a variety of reasons.

She said “A lot of people stay together over Christmas for the sake of their children. They make a decision to have one last family Christmas together before splitting.

"We find that often the number of new clients drops in the week before Christmas but then jumps dramatically after the festive period, perhaps with people making it their new year’s resolution to lose their partners like others might choose to lose weight.

"Other couples spend increased time at home within four walls which they’re not used to and emotions build up like a pressure cooker.

"They may be stressed because they have spent too much money and this adds to the pressure-cooker environment.”

She said that both the number of new clients and the amount of hits on their website doubles in the week after Christmas and trebled in the following week.

Mel Merritt, a spokeswoman for Relate, said they experience 50% more calls in January compared to December.

She said “At the start of the new year, people either resolve to fix their problems or draw a line under them and move on. We would urge anyone having problems to call relate as we can either held mend a relationship or reduce conflict.”

A 53-year old from Pontypridd, who asked to remain anonymous, had been separated from her partner for almost a year when she decided to inquire about getting a divorce and start with a clean slate for the year ahead.

She added: “The festive period was very unpleasant for my daughter and I and we didn’t want the same thing for the following year. We wanted a new start and to put it behind us. I decided January was the month to start finalising the end of my relationship. My husband had gone and I had to accept it and start afresh, which meant plucking up courage to go to the solicitors.”

Domestic abuse will affect one in four women in the UK during their lives, official figures show.

Now charities in Taff Ely are doing their bit to ease the problem for women, families and communities.

The shocking statistics come from Women’s Aid refuges across the UK, and it has been estimated that 12,000 families in Rhondda Cynon Taff alone may be affected by the harrowing crime.

The Pontypridd branch of the charity is reassuring the community of what is being done about domestic abuse in the area.

Kate Edwards, a solicitor with Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice LLP and chairwoman of Pontypridd Women’s Aid, said: “Local agencies have recently commissioned the Kafka Brigade to review the performance of all the agencies involved in domestic abuse.

“The aim of the review was to understand the barriers for service users in getting acces to the services they need.

“A significant outcome of the review was the development of a multi-agency action plan to address the issues highlighted and improve services to people experiencing domestic abuse.

“As a direct result, we have begun to work more closely together to develop and improve the service to women and children approaching Women’s Aid for help.”

Kate added that this is a major step forward for Women’s Aid, which has provided support services to women and children in Rhondda Cynon Taff for more than 30 years.

The charity is often most closely associated with its refuge service, while it also supports women in their own home through our floating support service, as well as via the drop-in service where women can come and talk about their situation.

Women’s Aid have continued to work in partnership with the Rhondda Cynon Taff supporting people team, community housing and Pontypridd Safety Unit to support women escaping domestic abuse.

The branch’s board of trustees comprises of five professional women with a broad range of skills and abilities.

But the group is always looking for more help and they currently have opening for additional trustees, particularly with finance skills.

If you are interested in becoming a trustee of Pontypridd Women’s Aid, please contact Siobhan Scullion at actingdirector@pontypriddwa.org.uk.

This trio of businesswomen are proving three heads are better than one when it comes to fundraising.

Alison Hazledine, Melanie Hamer and Rebecca Collins, founders of the South Wales Ladies Business club, are throwing a big top charity ball to raise money for the Teenage Cancer Trust.

The three set up the club three years ago to give businesswomen the opportunity to network with like-minded ladies and it now has more than 600 members.

Having raised £6,800 at the annual ball last year, which had a black and white theme, they are hoping to top that at the event on January 29 at the Mercure Holland House Hotel and Spa, Cardiff.

And despite the recession, the trio have already managed to sell more than 250 tickets.

Divorce lawyer Melanie, 44, said “We always hold it at the beginning of the year because we think it’s something for people to look forward to after Christmas. January is often a gloomy, depressing month.

“We chose the circus theme because a number of us went to see Take That in the Millennium Stadium last year and it worked for them so we thought, ‘Why can’t it work for us too?’

“We’ve got circus performers and a great band called Bogart, who are certain to get everyone on the dance floor. We also have some fantastic auction and raffle prizes on offer, including signed goods from Bryn Terfel, a signed CD from the Stereophonics, a signed Cardiff City shirt and a signed rugby ball from the Blues.”

The partner at Cardiff-based Wendy Hopkins Family Law Practice added: “at this stage we’ve sold more tickets than in previous years so it looks set to be our best annual ball yet.”

Ms Collins, 34, of Handelsbanken bank, said: “The reason we’re choosing to support Teenage Cancer Trust is because I used to work with someone whose 16 year-old brother died of cancer about 18 months ago.

“The teenage cancer unit at University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff, was in the process of being built at the time but unfortunately he died before he could take advantage of it.”

For more information on the charity ball or to book tickets, call Helen Vincent on (01633) 810 081 or e-mail helen.vincent@kilsbywilliams.com.