What Support Through Court does

Support Through Court is a UK-registered charity (Charity no. 1090781, Company no. 4360133) founded in 2001 by Diana Copisarow OBE originally as the Personal Support Unit at the Royal Courts of Justice, and rebranded to its current name in 2019. The organization provides free practical and emotional support to litigants in person — individuals representing themselves without legal representation — in civil and family courts across England and Wales. It serves roughly 45,000-50,000 individuals annually, with the majority of cases involving family law (divorce, child arrangements, domestic abuse) and civil matters (housing possession, eviction, debt, small claims). The charity has cumulatively delivered over 721,120 support sessions since founding, with 1,500 volunteers providing 51,000+ sessions in the most recent year (approximately one person supported every 90 seconds).

The charity operates three service channels: nine face-to-face service locations embedded within court buildings (including Royal Courts of Justice, Central Family Court, Birmingham, Manchester, Cardiff, Liverpool, Leeds, Sheffield, Chelmsford, Southend), a National Helpline launched in March 2020 (15,000+ sessions in its first year), and Support Through Court Online, a remote appointment service launched in 2023 in partnership with Nottingham Trent University that uses video conferencing and screen sharing to help clients complete court forms. The technical platform is modest — screen sharing, telephony, and a custom online platform developed with university partners — and the service is fundamentally volunteer-delivered, supported by a structured pipeline of nine UK university law school partnerships.

The business model is a non-profit, donation-and-grant funded operation. All services are provided free of charge to clients. Revenue streams include: individual donations (regular giving Champions programme, one-time gifts, legacies), government grants (previously £540,000/year core funding from the Ministry of Justice for eight years, now moved to an open grant round), corporate partnerships (including law firm residual client balances up to £500 under SRA rules, formalized via the March 2025 'Residual Impact' campaign), and large patron donations (notably £60,000 from Martin Lewis in 2022). The stated unit cost is £32 per person supported. The charity employs 8 paid staff and is governed by a Board chaired since 2025 by Katherine Milliken (COO of Macfarlanes); patrons include Martin Lewis and Dr. I. Stephanie Boyce (former President of the Law Society of England and Wales). Operational leadership is held by CEO Emma Taylor, formerly Head of Fundraising.

Name

Support Through Court

Legal name

Support Through Court

Website

https://supportthroughcourt.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Support Through Court is a UK charity that provides free practical and emotional support to individuals representing themselves in civil and family courts across England and Wales, serving 45,000-50,000 litigants in person annually via 1,500 trained volunteers operating from 17 courts, a National Helpline, and an online remote service.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Legal Support Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Other Individual and Family Services (62419), Other Legal Services (54119), Individual and Family Services (6241)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Legal Aid & Client Advocacy Services (BPAGAEAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Public Defense & Legal Aid Services (BPAIAFAC), Reentry & Justice-Involved Support Services (BPAGAEAN), Family & Parent Support Services (Parent Coaching, Advocacy) (EDAJALAK)

Keywords

• Litigant support services
• Court support services
• Access to justice
• Legal aid assistance
• Volunteer legal support

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices9 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Charitable donations from individuals: Individual donations from supporters, including regular giving programmes (Champions), one-time donations, and legacy gifts left in wills.
2. Ministry of Justice funding: Previously received core funding of £540,000 per year from the Ministry of Justice for eight years. Funding method changed to open grant round, creating uncertainty.
3. Law firm residual client balances: Campaign encouraging law firms to donate unclaimed client balances to the charity. SRA rules allow funds up to £500 to be donated without permission.
4. Corporate partnerships: Partnerships with companies and law firms including Microsoft Teams image references and corporate supporter recognition.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Support Through Court provides free practical and emotional support to people representing themselves in civil and family courts across England and Wales. Services are delivered by trained volunteers through face-to-face appointments at court buildings, a National Helpline, and remote online appointments, covering help with court forms, explanation of procedures, court bundle preparation, and accompaniment to hearings.

Product overview

Support Through Court is a UK-based legal support charity that operates as a single, unified service portfolio rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. The organization provides three interconnected support channels: face-to-face services at court locations across England and Wales, a National Helpline for phone-based assistance, and Support Through Court Online for remote virtual appointments. All services deliver practical and emotional support to people representing themselves in civil and family courts without legal representation. The charity relies on trained volunteers and operates from multiple court locations, with services including form completion assistance, court procedure guidance, hearing accompaniment, and signposting to additional resources.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Face-to-Face Court Support Services In-person support provided by trained volunteers at court locations across England and Wales. Volunteers offer practical assistance including form filling, court bundle preparation, emotional support, and guidance through complex legal procedures before, during, and after hearings.
• National Helpline Phone-based support service enabling people across England and Wales to access the charity's support remotely. Staffed by trained volunteers providing practical and emotional assistance to those facing court without representation.
• Support Through Court Online Remote support service launched in partnership with Nottingham Trent University, enabling volunteers to assist people across England and Wales through virtual appointments using screen sharing and video conferencing technology to help with court form completion and preparation.
• Remote Hearings Support Support service for individuals attending court hearings remotely via video or telephone. Volunteers assist clients with technology setup, navigating virtual court platforms, and providing real-time support during remote proceedings.

Quantifiable outcome

• 721,120 support sessions delivered since 2001
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core, supporting and flagship.

• Royal Holloway, University of LondoncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 June 2025Summer placement partnership welcoming students from Royal Holloway to volunteer with the charity at the Royal Courts of Justice and Central Family Court. Students gain valuable insight into the justice system and develop key communication skills while supporting clients.
• St Mary's University, Twickenham (School of Law)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 January 2025Partnership enabling law students to gain practical work experience through supporting people without representation at face-to-face appointments and court hearings. Students develop essential skills for legal careers while contributing to the charity's vital work.
• Birmingham City UniversitysupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024University partnership enabling law students to volunteer with the charity while gaining practical experience and building essential legal skills.
• Cardiff UniversitysupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024University partnership for student volunteering, part of network of university partnerships across England and Wales.
• Leeds Beckett UniversitysupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Partnership providing students opportunity to gain practical experience while supporting people facing court alone.
• Liverpool John Moores UniversitysupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024University partnership enabling students to volunteer and gain hands-on court experience while supporting the charity's mission.
• Manchester Metropolitan UniversitysupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Partnership enabling law students to provide support while gaining practical legal experience.
• University of SheffieldsupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024University partnership providing students with opportunities to gain practical legal experience while supporting people facing court.
• Nottingham Trent UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Partnership to launch Support Through Court Online, a remote service supporting people across England and Wales. University collaboration enables development of online support platform.
• Leeds Beckett UniversitysupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Early partnership announced in 2022 to offer hope to those facing court alone.
• Dr. I. Stephanie BoyceflagshipOthers · 1 January 2021Former President of the Law Society of England and Wales became a patron of the charity in January 2021. Made history as the 177th president, sixth female, first person of colour, and second in-house solicitor in almost 50 years.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Law Centres Network: Federation of locally funded law centres providing free legal advice and representation to people who cannot afford a lawyer — directly comparable mission and client base focused on social welfare law and access to justice.
• Citizens Advice: UK's largest advice charity providing free legal advice on housing, family, debt and consumer matters — overlaps directly with Support Through Court's litigants-in-person support and shares the same donor/government-grant funding model.
• Free Representation Unit (FRU): UK charity that prepares and presents cases on behalf of unrepresented litigants, principally in social security and employment tribunals — closest direct comparator in providing volunteer-supported representation to those facing hearings alone.

Emerging players

• Shelter: Major UK housing charity providing advice and advocacy on housing, eviction and homelessness — meaningful overlap with Support Through Court's housing-possession and eviction caseload and shares a court-accompaniment model in some regions.
• Release: UK charity providing free legal advice and representation on drug-related and other criminal/regulatory matters — comparable volunteer/staff structure and access-to-justice mission, though different legal domains.
• Refuge: UK charity supporting women and children experiencing domestic abuse — significant case-type overlap (non-molestation orders, child arrangements) with Support Through Court's family court litigants-in-person.

Regional players

• Citizens Advice Scotland: Scottish counterpart to Citizens Advice operating in a separate devolved justice system — comparable services and funding model but does not directly compete due to distinct jurisdiction.

Others

• Mind: UK mental health charity that regularly co-refers vulnerable clients (a key Support Through Court segment) and shares relationships with courts, judiciary and funders in the social welfare ecosystem.

Broad incumbents

• National Pro Bono Centre: UK umbrella body coordinating pro bono legal services across the profession — operates in the same access-to-justice space and connects to the same law firm partners and judiciary networks.
• Civil Legal Advice (Legal Aid Agency): Government-funded telephone service providing civil legal aid advice — the state-provided incumbent channel that Support Through Court's National Helpline complements for those ineligible for legal aid.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/SupportTCourt
• Facebookfacebook.com/SupportThroughCourt
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/supportthroughcourt
• Instagraminstagram.com/supporttcourt

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Support Through Court