The Lord Chancellor has appointed 2 new members to the Family Procedure Rule Committee (FPRC), Tony McGovern as solicitor member from 1 August 2020 to 31 July 2023, and Bill Turner as lay member from 4 November 2019 to 3 November 2022.

The Lord Chancellor has also appointed 3 practitioner members, Poonam Bhari, Graeme Fraser and Rhys Taylor for 3 years from 1 March 2021.

The Lord Chancellor has also reappointed Melanie Carew, as the Cafcass nominated member, for a second two year term from 1 December 2020.

The FPRC was established under Section 77 of the Courts Act 2003 to make family procedure rules. Its aim is to make clear, easily understandable rules to create an accessible, fair and efficient family justice system.

Biographies

Tony McGovern:

Tony McGovern qualified as a solicitor in 1997 and has since worked within the area of child protection. His practice is predominately representing young people within public law proceedings ensuring that their views and voices are heard. He is passionate about the right of children and ensures that they are fairly represented.

Bill Turner:

Bill Turner is a qualified social worker with extensive experience of working in children’s social care and has worked in a variety of frontline and leadership roles across London boroughs. He has extensive experience of complex safeguarding interventions and of public law proceedings in the Family Court and is currently Head of Safeguarding for Children and Adults at St George’s NHS Acute and Community Services Trust.

Poonam Bhari:

Poonam Bhari is a family law barrister called in 1999, who practises from 3PB (3 Paper Buildings). Poonam specialises in, and has considerable experience of, public and private family law cases involving children. Poonam has appeared at all levels of the Family Court, the High Court, and the Court of Appeal.  She is a former primary school teacher and special educational needs coordinator.

Graeme Fraser:

Graeme Fraser is a family law solicitor specialising in finance and children cases. He is a partner at London firm OGR Stock Denton LLP. He has experience at High Court and County Court levels of the Family Court. Graeme is a Resolution accredited specialist in complex financial remedies and cohabitation, the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 and has the Law Society Family Accreditation. He is Chair of Resolution’s Cohabitation Committee.

Rhys Taylor MCIArb:

Rhys Taylor MCIArb is a barrister, arbitrator and mediator. Rhys specialises in financial remedy and cohabitation cases. He is a Bencher of the Inner Temple and a member of the national committee of the Family Law Bar Association. He was a member of the Pension Advisory Group, co-author of Pensions on Divorce and other publications.

Melanie Carew:

Melanie Carew was, in 2015, appointed as a member of the FPRC. Since 2010, Melanie has been Head of Legal Services at Cafcass. She previously worked in private practice in Herefordshire and had specialised in Family Law, both within the private and public sector throughout her career. She joined the FPRC in her capacity as the Cafcass Head of Legal Services and has taken particular interest in the development of the rules as they affect children.

Appointments and re-appointments to the FPRC are regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments and comply with the Cabinet Office Governance Code on Public Appointments.

Appointments to the FPRC are made by the Lord Chancellor in consultation with the Lord Chief Justice for England and Wales who has delegated this to the President of the Family Division.

• Partnership comes as recent YouGov poll shows 59% of adults would either prefer their date to be vaccinated or wouldn’t date an unvaccinated person

• Young adults encouraged to take up the offer of a vaccine as under 30s to be invited in the coming days

Leading dating brands including Tinder, Match, Hinge, Bumble, Badoo, Plenty of Fish, OurTime and Muzmatch have teamed up with the government to encourage their users to get COVID-19 vaccinations through a new campaign.

From today, the country’s leading dating brands will add new features to their apps and websites to support the government’s ‘every vaccination gives us hope’ campaign. The campaign encourages younger people to get their vaccine in the second phase of the rollout, and join the millions who have already received their jabs.

The new features will allow users to show their support for the vaccine on their dating profiles and give in-app bonuses to those who say they are vaccinated.

Features will include vaccination badges and stickers to display on dating profiles, free “Super Likes” and other boost-type features.

Users will also start seeing adverts and banners for the ‘every vaccination gives us hope’ campaign.

Although providing vaccination status on these apps is optional, data has shown that people are more likely to date someone who has received a COVID-19 vaccination.

A recent YouGov poll conducted on 21 May also shows 31% of adults would prefer to date someone who was vaccinated and a further 28% would not date someone unless they had received the jab.

Vaccines Minister, Minister Zahawi said:

I am thrilled that we are partnering up with dating apps to boost vaccine uptake across the country. This is another incredible asset to our vaccination programme – the biggest and most successful in our history.

The vaccine is our way out of this pandemic and we have made incredible progress so far with over three quarters of adults receiving at least one dose.

I encourage everyone who is eligible to roll up their sleeves and get the jab – it could save your life and protect your loved ones.

Examples of vaccine promotion campaigns launching across dating platforms in the UK include:

• Tinder: members will be able to add a variety of stickers to their profile including “I’m Vaccinated” or “Vaccines Save Lives,” with Tinder giving those who support the campaign a free “Super Like” to help them stand out among potential matches. Tinder will also launch a “Vaccine Center” with a suite of resources to educate and connect members with their nearest vaccination site.

• Match & Ourtime: members will be able to add a new badge to their profile to display their vaccine status, with those who participate in the campaign receiving a free “Boost” to help them stand out on the app. Match’s AI-enabled Dating Coach, Lara, will also encourage Match users to get their vaccination badge.

• OkCupid: users will be able to add an “I’m Vaccinated” profile badge and be featured within OkCupid’s “Vaccinated” stack, its new matching system that lets users search by select categories on the app. Those who participate will also receive a free “Boost.”

• Hinge: users who participate in their vaccination campaign will get a free “Rose,” which indicates to other users that they’re excited to get to know them.

• Plenty of Fish: members will be able to add an “I Got My Shot” badge to their profiles. Those who participate will receive 20 Live! credits to use on the Plenty of Fish Live streaming feature.

• Bumble: the popular women-first dating app will enable people in the UK to add a “vaccinated” badge to their profiles. For those who apply the badge, Bumble will offer complimentary credits for premium features such as Spotlights and Superswipes. People on Bumble will also be able to share COVID-19 preferences, letting them easily communicate how they are comfortable dating: outdoors or indoors, how they feel about crowded spaces, and their expectations about masks and social-distancing. Bumble will also leverage their social media channels to amplify the need to get vaccinated.

• Badoo: in-app promotions will enable people in the UK to add a “vaccinated” badge to their profiles. In addition, Badoo will offer vaccinated people complimentary credits for premium features such as Spotlights and Superswipes. Badoo will also leverage their social media channels to amplify the need to get vaccinated.

• Muzmatch: content featuring medics answering users’ most pressing questions about the vaccine will run across social media channels.

Alexandre Lubot, CEO of Match Group, EMEA and APAC said:

An important part of returning to normal is helping people feel safe as they connect in person.

We are honoured to work with the UK government to encourage our members to participate in the vaccination campaign across our dating platforms.

A unified push towards more vaccinations will allow people to once again meet in person and connect in meaningful ways.

Online Dating Association Chief Executive George Kidd said:

The ODA were delighted to play its part in getting the message out on vaccinations.

Dating apps and services are the start point for about a third of all new relationships. When meeting in person was not possible, services were an important way of meeting others online, with the hope of meeting up later when safe to do so.

About 10 million people in the UK use or have used dating apps and services. Our members account for most of this user base. We shared campaign video or advertising on apps, landing pages and through social media channels.

For us, every step to a return to people meeting up, making new friends and starting new relationships is a step forward for us all.

Naomi Walkland, Bumble’s Vice President for Europe said:

We know that single people are looking to take control of their dating lives as we head into summer. The ‘Covid conversation’ is already front of mind for 2 in 3 people on Bumble, so it’s important to make it easier to feel comfortable and safe on a date.

To do this, we’ll launch a new “vaccinated” badge along with in-app preferences so you can easily communicate if you’re comfortable dating indoors or outdoors only.

In support of the Government’s vaccination campaign, we will also direct people in-app to learn how to get vaccinated, including linking to educational materials and information on how to find the nearest vaccination site through the NHS.

Shahzad Younas, Founder, CEO, Muzmatch said:

We at Muzmatch are really thrilled to be working with the UK government on the vaccine campaign.

We understand the concerns young Muslims have regarding the vaccination, in particular those that are in the process of getting married. Misinformation has been spreading at an alarming rate in our communities, which is why we’re glad to work with the NHS to clear up myths about the vaccine and encourage our members to get vaccinated.

As a marriage app helping single Muslims find love, we knew when the pandemic hit we had to act fast to ensure people could meet safely. We were the first Muslim marriage app that rolled out Video and Voice Calling for our members so that they could meet on virtual dates.

As we begin to return to a new normal, it’s vital that young Muslims do so by getting vaccinated, to ensure the safety of not only themselves but their loved ones too.

James Preece, the UK’s top celebrity dating expert and dating coach, said:

There’s no doubt that dating has been different and somewhat difficult for many individuals over the last 13 months.

Having the vaccine is one of the most important things people can do to keep themselves and others safe.

The fact that the leading dating apps have come together to support members being vaccinated will go a long way to people feeling confident meeting in person and dating again.

The partnership comes as people aged 30 and over are now eligible to get their COVID-19 vaccine. The government has already hit its target of offering everyone in cohorts 1 to 9 – those aged 50 and over, the clinically vulnerable and health and social care workers – a first dose of the vaccine by 15 April. It’s on track to offer a jab to all adults in the UK by the end of July.

Vaccinated people are far less likely to get COVID-19 with symptoms. Vaccinated people are even more unlikely to get serious COVID-19, to be admitted to hospital or to die from it. There is growing evidence that vaccinated people are less likely to pass the virus to others.

Working together with local health boards and the NHS, personnel are part of Operation Rescript, the Armed Forces Covid-19 response. They are providing ongoing assistance to administer vaccines, provide logistics and planning support, as well as carrying out surge testing in response to variants of concern.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace, said:

The Armed Forces continue to show their incredible versatility and flexibility, deploying wherever and whenever they are needed in support of this national vaccination effort.

I am delighted to see that across all corners of the UK, military personnel are working side by side with their NHS counterparts to help get the British public vaccinated as quickly as possible.

Health and Social Care Secretary, Matt Hancock said:

We have vaccinated over three quarters of UK adults with a first dose and half of adults with a second dose. That is a huge effort across the healthcare system and beyond – and I am incredibly grateful for the amazing role our armed forces have played in this.

We know how effective the vaccine is, thousands of lives have been saved and thousands of hospitalisations prevented. These are not just numbers, these are our family, friends and loved ones who have all been protected. Each vaccine brings us one step closer to putting this pandemic behind us. So when you get the call, get the jab.

North-West England

Armed Forces personnel have deployed to Bolton and Blackburn to help the NHS, DHSC and local councils respond to the variants of concern identified in the area. 144 medics from across the Army are working on the vaccine programme in Bolton in addition to 75 personnel who are providing support to mass testing. They are working alongside RE: SILIENT and St Johns Ambulance service.

In nearby Blackburn, 55 personnel from 19 Regiment Royal Artillery are also supporting the testing programme, providing additional capacity to help break chains of transmission.

Scotland

63 members of the Armed Forces will deploy to Lanarkshire and Lothian from Monday 7 June for up to five weeks. 42 service personnel will provide support to NHS Lothian. This will be made up of 36 vaccinators, 4 registered health professionals and 2 command and control managers. They will be split into 4 vaccine support teams who can deploy across Lothian as required.

21 service personnel will also work alongside NHS Lanarkshire and will consist of 18 vaccinators, 2 registered health professionals and one command and control manager. They will form two vaccine support teams and will deploy across Lanarkshire as required.

Northern Ireland

In Northern Ireland, a Vaccine Task Group made up of 100 Combat Medical Technicians and 22 logisticians supported the mass vaccination programme for 8 weeks.

Alongside their Health and Social Care Northern Ireland counterparts, medics administered almost 121,000 vaccines which saw 7% of the population being vaccinated against the virus by the military. Regular and reservist personnel from 32 units across all three services supported the programme at the SSE Arena in Belfast until the end of May.

Commander Standing Joint Command, General Tyrone Urch said:

I am incredibly proud of our servicemen and women who have deployed in support of the Department for Health and Social Care, NHS and Health Boards across the United Kingdom to help deliver the vaccination programme efficiently and at pace.

We are delighted to be able to support and complement the incredible work done by health professionals and volunteers across the country and we will continue to deliver anything requested of us.

As part of the UK Government’s response to variants of concern, 400 trained vaccinators from across the Armed Forces are available to be deploy when and wherever required. 4,300 service personnel also remain at high readiness and can be called upon to support with Covid-19 tasks across the UK.

This comes in addition to support the Armed Forces have provided around the world, including delivering vaccines to Ascension Island, Falklands, Gibraltar and Tristan da Cunha, and delivering other essential COVID supplies to India and Nepal.