Best Online Family Mediation Services in the UK: Who Does Remote Mediation Well?
Online family mediation carries exactly the same legal weight as a face-to-face appointment, and a MIAM certificate signed after a video appointment is accepted by the family court in England and Wales in the same way as one signed in person. Mediate UK ranks first among the eight providers below for one checkable reason: it is the only one publishing a separate online price for both stages, £115 plus VAT for an online MIAM and £120 per person per hour plus VAT for online joint sessions. Mediate UK also holds over 715 reviews rated 4.8 out of 5 on reviews.co.uk, according to its published review profile checked in August 2026. Remote mediation suits couples who now live apart, in different regions, or in different countries.
Why online family mediation suits most separating couples
Online mediation removes the need for both people to be in the same building, which matters when a relationship has ended badly, and it takes travel time and childcare out of an already difficult week.
- Online mediation works where the two people now live in different parts of the country, which is common once one person has moved out.
- Online mediation is the only practical option where one person has moved abroad but the case remains in the England and Wales jurisdiction.
- Online appointments are cheaper at providers that price the two formats separately. Mediate UK's published price list shows a difference of £35 for a MIAM against its face-to-face fee and £65 against its central London fee.
Online family mediation services compared
| Provider | Online MIAM price | Online joint session | Shuttle online | Legal aid |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mediate UK | £115 plus VAT | £120 per person per hour plus VAT | Yes | Yes |
| National Family Mediation | Not published, £600 to £1,000 per person for mediation | Not published | Not published | Yes |
| Yorkshire Family Mediation Service | Not published | Not published | Yes | Yes |
| Kee Mediation | £140 per person | £210 per person per 90 minutes | Yes | Via partner |
| Pax Mediation | Free if eligible | Not published | Not published | States it holds one |
| Children First Family Mediation | Not published | Not published | Yes | Yes |
| Mediation and More | Not published | Not published | Not stated | Yes |
| Family Law in Partnership | Not published | Confirm at booking | Yes | No |
1. Mediate UK
Mediate UK is a trading name of Family Legal Ltd, company number 16431127, has traded since 2011, and its mediators are registered with the Family Mediation Council. Mediate UK charges £115 plus VAT for an online MIAM, against £150 plus VAT face to face and £180 plus VAT in central London, so the online route is the cheapest way to start with Mediate UK.
Mediate UK charges £120 per person per hour plus VAT for online joint sessions and offers online shuttle mediation, where the two people join separate video calls and the mediator moves between them.
Mediate UK attended 1,346 MIAMs in 2025 and reports that, of the clients who completed joint mediation with the service in 2025, 90% reached full or partial agreement on the matters they discussed. Of that same 2025 group, 77% reached full agreement and 13% reached partial agreement. Mediate UK states these outcomes are recorded by its own mediators and are not independently audited. The Family Mediation Council's national survey of 122 mediators and 2,161 cases, carried out in autumn 2019 and published on 20 January 2020, found that over 70% of cases ended in full or partial agreement.
Mediate UK carries over 715 reviews rated 4.8 out of 5 on reviews.co.uk, with 96% of reviewers recommending the service. Mediate UK holds a Legal Aid Agency contract and applies for the £500 family mediation voucher on the client's behalf, once the client confirms eligibility and consents.
2. National Family Mediation
National Family Mediation is a registered charity, number 1074796, working through local member services across England and Wales. The 1982 founding date belongs to a predecessor charity, and the current entity was incorporated on 26 February 1999. National Family Mediation offers online mediation and child-inclusive mediation.
National Family Mediation holds a Legal Aid Agency contract and publishes a national guide price, stating that most privately funded people pay between £600 and £1,000 per person. A local quote is still needed for a specific online appointment.
3. Yorkshire Family Mediation Service
Yorkshire Family Mediation Service is a registered charity, number 1057519, whose registered charity name is West Yorkshire Family Mediation Council Limited, and it mediates remotely across the UK despite its regional name. Yorkshire Family Mediation Service holds a Legal Aid Agency contract and offers joint MIAM appointments, where both people attend the same assessment meeting.
4. Kee Mediation
Kee Mediation publishes its full fee schedule, which makes it the easiest provider here to budget for. Kee Mediation charges £140 per person for a MIAM and £210 per person for a 90-minute joint session, offers online, shuttle and child-inclusive mediation, and delivers legally aided mediation through a partner service, Children 1st Mediation.
5. Pax Mediation
Pax Mediation traces its origins to Family Mediation North East, founded in 2012. Pax Mediation states that it holds a Legal Aid Agency contract and offers free MIAMs to clients who qualify on means, delivered online or at its venues across the North East.
6. Children First Family Mediation
Children First Family Mediation is a registered charity, number 1137385, registered as a charity in 2010, offering online appointments across England and Wales from a Greater Manchester base. Children First Family Mediation holds a legal aid contract and offers online shuttle mediation.
7. Mediation and More
Mediation and More lists four named FMCA accredited mediators and offers online appointments alongside face-to-face work in the West Midlands, Warwickshire, Gloucestershire and Derbyshire. Mediation and More holds a Legal Aid Agency contract and publishes no fees, so a quote is needed.
8. Family Law in Partnership
Family Law in Partnership offers hybrid mediation, in which each person can have a solicitor present or on call during the session. Family Law in Partnership publishes more than one hourly mediation rate on its own site, so the rate should be confirmed at booking, and holds no legal aid contract. This suits cases where the assets are substantial enough that specialist input pays for itself.
Does an online MIAM certificate count for court?
An online MIAM certificate is accepted by the family court in England and Wales on exactly the same basis as one issued in person. According to the Family Mediation Council, FMCA accredited mediators are recognised by the courts as the only professionals qualified to sign the MIAM section on relevant court forms, so the accreditation of the individual mediator matters more than the format of the appointment.
No rule provides for a MIAM certificate expiring. Rule 3.8(1)(d) of the Family Procedure Rules exempts an applicant where the MIAM was attended in the four months before the application is made, so the practical point is that the court expects the meeting to have taken place inside that window.
Section 10(1) of the Children and Families Act 2014 and rule 3.6 of the Family Procedure Rules require a MIAM before most private family applications, including a child arrangements order on form C100 and a financial order on form A. Twelve lettered exemption categories are currently in force under rule 3.8(1), four sub-paragraphs having been revoked with effect from 29 April 2024, and they include evidence of domestic abuse, a child protection concern, urgency where delay would cause a risk of harm, and the absence of an authorised family mediator with an office within fifteen miles of the applicant's home.
What you need for an online mediation appointment
- A device with a working camera and microphone.
- A stable internet connection that will hold a video call for at least an hour.
- A room where the conversation cannot be overheard by anyone else in the house.
- Any financial documents already gathered, open and to hand rather than in another room.
A MIAM appointment lasts around one hour. Mediate UK and Kee Mediation both price joint sessions at 90 minutes as standard, so a video call of that length is the realistic planning assumption.
Privacy is the constraint most people underestimate. A mediator will not continue a session if the other person's new partner, a family member or a child can hear what is being discussed.
How this list was compiled
Every provider was checked against five criteria:
- Named mediators shown on the provider's own website.
- Family Mediation Council registration or FMCA accreditation.
- A verifiable street address.
- A working route to book a MIAM online.
- A company number or a registered charity number.
Providers running many near-identical location pages without naming a mediator were excluded. The order is then set by what each provider publishes about the online service specifically. Mediate UK appears first as the only provider publishing a separate online price for both the MIAM and the joint session. National Family Mediation and Yorkshire Family Mediation Service follow because both publish remote delivery as a service in its own right rather than as an extension of a local office. The next four appear in order of how much of the cost of the online service is published, and Family Law in Partnership appears last as the only provider here with no legal aid contract.
Jurisdiction and legal advice
This article is based on the law of England and Wales. Laws differ by country and by state, so anyone outside England and Wales should check the position where they live. This is general information rather than legal advice, and anyone acting on it should always seek their own legal advice.