News.

The Family Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2026 came into force on 20 July 2026, restricting the use of unregulated psychological experts in children proceedings in England and Wales. The rules generally require that a psychological expert be regulated by the HCPC or listed on an accredited voluntary register, permitting an unregulated expert only in exceptional circumstances — for example where their specific expertise is genuinely required, or to avoid delay that would harm a child’s welfare — and requiring judges to document the efforts made to find a regulated alternative.

The reform is the culmination of the story that has run through the family courts since *Re C* [2023] and *Re Y* [2026], and follows investigative reporting into cases where advice from unregulated experts contributed to children being removed from their mothers. Jaime Craig, chair of the Association of Clinical Psychologists-UK, said the rules gave “real hope that the days of bogus experts are over”; family barrister Lucy Reed KC cautioned that even where finding a regulated expert causes delay, “the answer is not going to be to instruct someone who is simply not suitable.” The rules are not retrospective.