Calls for divorce process to be reformed because it is too complicated

The Ministry of Justice is due to explain how it intends to reform the legal requirements relating to divorce following the publication of the Nuffield Foundation’s Reforming the Ground for Divorce: Experiences from Other Jurisdictions report.

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Landlords required to pay up to £3,500 under Energy Rating Rules

Landlords have been required to ensure that any residential property that they lease has an EPC rating of at least an E since 1 April 2018, unless they have registered that it is exempt on the National PRS Exemptions Register under the rules in the Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015 (MEES Regulations).

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Funding for children's services slashed by a third since 2010

Since 2010, funding available for children’s services has fallen from £813 to £553 per child in England, the UK's leading children's charities have announced this month.

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London asking prices down 2.1%

The national average asking price is up 0.7 per cent on last month and 0.2 per cent annually, sitting at £300,715 in February 2019, according to the latest house price index.

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Almost half of Brits wrongly believe common law marriage exists in the UK

Cohabitating couples are now the fastest-growing family group in England and Wales, and yet recent research reveals almost half of British people mistakenly think that unmarried couples who live together have a ‘common law marriage’.

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A single housing complaints service to launch in England

A new complaints service for landlords and tenants in England is to be launched, a “single, swift and effective route to complain when things go wrong”, according to the Property Ombudsman.

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Decline in the volume of sales of residential properties in the UK

The latest UK House Price Index, which is released every month, paints a diverse picture of the UK property market for August 2018. The number of property transactions completed in the UK in June 2018 was 21.5% lower when compared to June 2017. Similarly, the UK Residential Market Survey reveals that The Newly Agreed Sales net balance came in at -10% which represents the most negative reading on this metric for five months. However, after a sharp fall in activity at the end of last year, current sales trends are stabilising in London. The UK Residential Market Survey explains that…

Divorce rate at its lowest in 40 years

The divorce rate among opposite-sex couples in England and Wales is at its lowest since 1973, according to new research from the ONS. Only 8.4 per 1,000 married couples got a divorce in 2017, a decrease of 5.6% compared with 2016. The ONS publication, which was released yesterday, looks at a number of factors which can influence the divorce rate, such as: age of divorce duration of marriage opposite-sex v same-sex divorce rate reason for divorce Average age of divorce in England & Wales In 2017, the highest divorce rate for opposite-sex couples was among men between the…

House price growth almost twice as fast near top state schools

Over the last five years, house price growth in areas with high performing state schools has substantially outpaced the rest of the country, according to the latest study from Lloyds Bank.

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OWC Ashford and Shepperton offices raise funds

Owen White & Catlin's Ashford and Shepperton offices raise funds for Shooting Star Chase Children's Hospice Care Owen White & Catlin's Ashford and Shepperton offices have raised £341.01 in support of the Shooting Star Chase Children's Hospice Care (www.shootingstarchase.org.uk). Well done to all involved!