3PB’s ‘very well-rounded set’ of family law barristers is a ‘go-to’ on the Western Circuit. Lucy Hendry KC, who represents lay parties, subject children, intervenors, and guardians in factually and medically complex cases, is widely considered a ‘top-class advocate’ for both public and private children law cases, while Nicola Frost is a ‘go-to barrister for difficult private children law cases’. Her broad practice includes child abduction and Hague Convention cases, as well as surrogacy and intractable contract disputes. Former circuit judge Martin Dancey joined chambers as an associate member in January 2023 - he is active as an ADR evaluator.
Family: children and domestic violence in
Regional Bar
3PB
Testimonials
‘Sarah Jenking is delightful to deal with. She has a great relationship with Bournemouth family court and will go out of her way to be accommodating.’
‘Lee Giles is always fantastic to speak to. He is always friendly, quick to respond and very knowledgeable.’
‘The service of the clerks is excellent and they are polite, efficient, most helpful and always friendly. They will bend over backwards to help fit the requested and most suitable counsel for the instructions. All clerks are equally helpful but particularly Rob Leonard, Stuart Pringle and Sarah Jenkin.’
‘A fabulous chambers with great selection of barristers for all types of matters.’
‘3PB Chambers is an amazing set of chambers: friendly, efficient and very well respected as an outstanding set both locally and nationally.’
Pump Court Chambers
With ‘a good range of juniors, senior juniors, and KCs’, Pump Court Chambers’ family law team is ‘flourishing’. Penny Howe KC, who ‘excels in cross-dealing with medical experts’, regularly represents parents subject to parallel criminal investigation for serious crimes and has recently been instructed in cases involving the safety of the children of a convicted terrorist and deliberate bleach poisoning. Leslie Samuels KC, with considerable experience in long fact-finding hearings involving the physical abuse of young children and babies, is widely seen as a ‘cut above the rest’.
Testimonials
‘Sean Gentleman is one of the best Senior Clerks around.’
‘James Collier is a fantastic clerk. Likeable, knowledgeable and organised.’
‘Sean Gentleman leads the team with a professional and confident yet friendly and approachable attitude. He is ably supported by the rest of the clerking team.’
‘Pump Court is an excellent chambers with strength in depth.’
‘An excellent set with good a range of juniors, senior juniors and KCs. Their webinars are topical and useful, and there is a good availability of counsel through the year.’
‘They are a flourishing set, from a family law perspective.’
St John's Chambers
St John’s Chambers is one of the leading sets on the Western Circuit for public and private child law work. Christopher Sharp KC is instructed by parents, local authorities, and guardians in child protection cases involving catastrophic or fatal injuries. Abigail Bond, specialising in care proceedings involving learning disabled parents, heads the practice group in chambers.
Testimonials
‘Marcus Harding is a credit to the team; he always goes above and beyond.’
‘The clerking at St John’s is extremely effective. They are often able to deliver on listings and assist in fixing hearings up in a way that other chambers do not quite match. Luke Hodgson in particular is a standout.’
‘Elaine Jewell-Moore’s ability to find counsel availability or move diaries around is excellent. She is always willing to consider the client’s needs in terms of costs and seniority.’
‘Marcus Harding is in equal measures brilliant and dynamic. If something needs doing, Marcus will get it done!‘
‘St John’s Chambers offers a very good service and an impressive number of highly skilled barristers.’
‘St John’s Chambers has a large offering of experienced barristers covering all aspects of private children proceedings.’
‘St John’s Chambers is easily the best for Family Law in the South West. The clerks are very helpful and knowledgeable and counsel are always great.’
Albion Chambers
Albion Chambers is widely praised as ‘one of the leading family law chambers in Bristol and the South West’. Sarah Pope, ‘great with clients and her opponents alike’, has considerable experience handling complex matters, including those involving child death, serious physical abuse, and families including individuals with learning disabilities. Caroline Middleton, a ‘determined and fearless advocate’, is often instructed in cases involving controlling and coercive behaviour and serious sexual assault, as well as allegations of parental alienation. In September 2023 James Cranfield was appointed to the circuit bench.
Testimonials
‘Michael Harding is always able to assist whenever assistance is required.’
‘The Clerks are always friendly and approachable. Michael Harding is proactive, efficient and is an absolute pleasure to work with.’
‘Albion Chambers is one of the go-to chambers in Bristol. The standard of counsel and support staff is one of the highest in the area. They really care and are always approachable.’
‘Albion Chambers is one of the leading sets in Bristol and the South West. They have a good mix of experience, from new tenants to old hands.’
‘Albion Chambers is an excellent set for all types of private family work. They have a broad range of counsel at all levels.’
‘One of the leading Chambers in Bristol and South West. They have excellent barristers at all levels.’
KBG Chambers
KBG Chambers, with facilities in Plymouth, Truro and Exeter, hosts ‘a wide range of experienced childcare barristers’ that operate across the South West. William Higginson, who leads the team, is ‘calm and logical even in the most difficult of situations’ - he regularly acts on instructions from children's guardians. Samuel Castlehouse’s ‘advocacy never fails to impress’, which he employs on behalf of local authorities, parents, and children in final hearings and fact-findings of varying length and complexity.
Testimonials
‘Excellent service – Colin Palmer is always on the end of a telephone – similarly Yvonne Simmons and Emily Veitch are reliable and extremely personable and always are able to know what the requirements are and do their best to accommodate.’
‘Emily Veitch is particularly helpful. She is always responsive to communication in a timely manner, will go out of her way to assist with counsel availability and is always friendly to deal with.’
‘The clerks are brilliantly organised – Colin Palmer runs a tight shop and Yvonne is one of the most approachable, down to earth, helpful people around.’
‘The set has a strong family team that has members of varying calls.’
‘KBG offers a wide range of experience childcare barristers.’
‘KBG has a number of very good barristers in the family category. The availability of counsel is good and they provide very helpful local training.’
No.18 Barristers Chambers
No.18 Barristers Chambers, a ‘strong set with few weak links’, hosts a ‘great range of barristers’ with broad expertise in children law work. Tracey Hennessey, an ‘incredibly competent barrister’, regularly represents local authorities, parents, guardians, children and interveners in care proceedings. She is widely recognised for her skillful handling of vulnerable clients, including those with learning difficulties. Rachel Chapman already has experience in a wide range of cases, including those involving serious physical abuse, neglect, sexual abuse and international elements.
Testimonials
‘Mark Windebank is a very helpful and enthusiastic clerk who will offer help whenever possible.’
‘Mark Windebank is the best clerk around. He is fast, efficient and always gets back to you.’
‘The clerks are really helpful and Mark Windebank in particular is incredibly good at giving a personal touch and doing everything he can to help.’
‘No 18 Chambers is a very good barristers set. They offer a range of barristers with different experience and different qualities.’
‘No 18 is a strong set with few weak links and they are always willing to go the extra mile to assist. They also offer training which is always strong and are willing to provide bespoke training when requested.’
‘The set is extremely strong with a great range of barristers.’
3PB
Testimonials
‘Sarah Jenking is delightful to deal with. She has a great relationship with Bournemouth family court and will go out of her way to be accommodating.’
‘Lee Giles is always fantastic to speak to. He is always friendly, quick to respond and very knowledgeable.’
‘The service of the clerks is excellent and they are polite, efficient, most helpful and always friendly. They will bend over backwards to help fit the requested and most suitable counsel for the instructions. All clerks are equally helpful but particularly Rob Leonard, Stuart Pringle and Sarah Jenkin.’
‘A fabulous chambers with great selection of barristers for all types of matters.’
‘3PB Chambers is an amazing set of chambers: friendly, efficient and very well respected as an outstanding set both locally and nationally.’
Pump Court Chambers
With ‘a good range of juniors, senior juniors, and KCs’, Pump Court Chambers’ family law team is ‘flourishing’. Penny Howe KC, who ‘excels in cross-dealing with medical experts’, regularly represents parents subject to parallel criminal investigation for serious crimes and has recently been instructed in cases involving the safety of the children of a convicted terrorist and deliberate bleach poisoning. Leslie Samuels KC, with considerable experience in long fact-finding hearings involving the physical abuse of young children and babies, is widely seen as a ‘cut above the rest’.
Testimonials
‘Sean Gentleman is one of the best Senior Clerks around.’
‘James Collier is a fantastic clerk. Likeable, knowledgeable and organised.’
‘Sean Gentleman leads the team with a professional and confident yet friendly and approachable attitude. He is ably supported by the rest of the clerking team.’
‘Pump Court is an excellent chambers with strength in depth.’
‘An excellent set with good a range of juniors, senior juniors and KCs. Their webinars are topical and useful, and there is a good availability of counsel through the year.’
‘They are a flourishing set, from a family law perspective.’
St John's Chambers
St John’s Chambers is one of the leading sets on the Western Circuit for public and private child law work. Christopher Sharp KC is instructed by parents, local authorities, and guardians in child protection cases involving catastrophic or fatal injuries. Abigail Bond, specialising in care proceedings involving learning disabled parents, heads the practice group in chambers.
Testimonials
‘Marcus Harding is a credit to the team; he always goes above and beyond.’
‘The clerking at St John’s is extremely effective. They are often able to deliver on listings and assist in fixing hearings up in a way that other chambers do not quite match. Luke Hodgson in particular is a standout.’
‘Elaine Jewell-Moore’s ability to find counsel availability or move diaries around is excellent. She is always willing to consider the client’s needs in terms of costs and seniority.’
‘Marcus Harding is in equal measures brilliant and dynamic. If something needs doing, Marcus will get it done!‘
‘St John’s Chambers offers a very good service and an impressive number of highly skilled barristers.’
‘St John’s Chambers has a large offering of experienced barristers covering all aspects of private children proceedings.’
‘St John’s Chambers is easily the best for Family Law in the South West. The clerks are very helpful and knowledgeable and counsel are always great.’
Albion Chambers
Albion Chambers is widely praised as ‘one of the leading family law chambers in Bristol and the South West’. Sarah Pope, ‘great with clients and her opponents alike’, has considerable experience handling complex matters, including those involving child death, serious physical abuse, and families including individuals with learning disabilities. Caroline Middleton, a ‘determined and fearless advocate’, is often instructed in cases involving controlling and coercive behaviour and serious sexual assault, as well as allegations of parental alienation. In September 2023 James Cranfield was appointed to the circuit bench.
Testimonials
‘Michael Harding is always able to assist whenever assistance is required.’
‘The Clerks are always friendly and approachable. Michael Harding is proactive, efficient and is an absolute pleasure to work with.’
‘Albion Chambers is one of the go-to chambers in Bristol. The standard of counsel and support staff is one of the highest in the area. They really care and are always approachable.’
‘Albion Chambers is one of the leading sets in Bristol and the South West. They have a good mix of experience, from new tenants to old hands.’
‘Albion Chambers is an excellent set for all types of private family work. They have a broad range of counsel at all levels.’
‘One of the leading Chambers in Bristol and South West. They have excellent barristers at all levels.’
KBG Chambers
KBG Chambers, with facilities in Plymouth, Truro and Exeter, hosts ‘a wide range of experienced childcare barristers’ that operate across the South West. William Higginson, who leads the team, is ‘calm and logical even in the most difficult of situations’ - he regularly acts on instructions from children's guardians. Samuel Castlehouse’s ‘advocacy never fails to impress’, which he employs on behalf of local authorities, parents, and children in final hearings and fact-findings of varying length and complexity.
Testimonials
‘Excellent service – Colin Palmer is always on the end of a telephone – similarly Yvonne Simmons and Emily Veitch are reliable and extremely personable and always are able to know what the requirements are and do their best to accommodate.’
‘Emily Veitch is particularly helpful. She is always responsive to communication in a timely manner, will go out of her way to assist with counsel availability and is always friendly to deal with.’
‘The clerks are brilliantly organised – Colin Palmer runs a tight shop and Yvonne is one of the most approachable, down to earth, helpful people around.’
‘The set has a strong family team that has members of varying calls.’
‘KBG offers a wide range of experience childcare barristers.’
‘KBG has a number of very good barristers in the family category. The availability of counsel is good and they provide very helpful local training.’
No.18 Barristers Chambers
No.18 Barristers Chambers, a ‘strong set with few weak links’, hosts a ‘great range of barristers’ with broad expertise in children law work. Tracey Hennessey, an ‘incredibly competent barrister’, regularly represents local authorities, parents, guardians, children and interveners in care proceedings. She is widely recognised for her skillful handling of vulnerable clients, including those with learning difficulties. Rachel Chapman already has experience in a wide range of cases, including those involving serious physical abuse, neglect, sexual abuse and international elements.
Testimonials
‘Mark Windebank is a very helpful and enthusiastic clerk who will offer help whenever possible.’
‘Mark Windebank is the best clerk around. He is fast, efficient and always gets back to you.’
‘The clerks are really helpful and Mark Windebank in particular is incredibly good at giving a personal touch and doing everything he can to help.’
‘No 18 Chambers is a very good barristers set. They offer a range of barristers with different experience and different qualities.’
‘No 18 is a strong set with few weak links and they are always willing to go the extra mile to assist. They also offer training which is always strong and are willing to provide bespoke training when requested.’
‘The set is extremely strong with a great range of barristers.’