Wikivorce - making life better for people going through divorce

Wikivorce is a community - and we all have a sense of ownership and belonging. So everyones' views are important. Having taken on board all of the points that you made, we wanted to make some commitments to you.

The first and most important commitment is that Wikivorce will remain FREE to all users.

We do understand those who expressed concern over the recent changes, so we would like to make some commitments about how Wikivorce will use any income generated:

we need to cover the operational costs of running the free support site, such as providing customer service, and we may need to upgrade our IT servers and hosting

a portion of our income will go towards raising awareness of the site, so that people know we are here and can benefit from what the site has to offer

we will be working extremely hard this year to develop a whole range of much improved free divorce resources, so that people can process their own divorce at no cost

we will be the first organisation in the UK to fully address the needs of litigants in person (or Self Reppers) with a range of resources, tailored services and free support

we will put more structure and guidelines around the chat rooms to ensure that they succeed in their primary purpose of providing much needed support, especially to newbies

we will develop a national network of local divorce support groups, in partnership with a national charity, train local facilitators and subsidise courses for people on low incomes

we will lobby the government for reform of family law and for a streamlining of the court process to reduce costs and delays, and to increase consistency of outcomes

we want to create more specific content on Wikivorce for people in Scotland. This will include Scottish specific divorce guides, forms, help sheets and forum areas

Wikivorce has a simple aim: to help people to get through divorce with a minimum of stress and financial expense. We strongly believe that offering a combination of free support via the website and access to affordable divorce services is fully consistent with that aim.

If anyone has any more ideas for things we can do to benefit the community - please add your suggestions below...

I also want to thank again all of the contributors who have brought us this far. Wikivorce is still a long, long way from even covering its running costs so we will continue to need your support to help out on the site. So thanks to all those of you who have helped out on the forums, in chat, organising wikistock, organising other local social events and working towards setting up the local support groups. The Wikivorce team and more importantly the rest of the community truly appreciate your efforts.

If anyone is willing to volunteer to assist on one of the above projects - then add a comment below or send a private message to Wikivorce team if you prefer. Many Thanks, Ian

rubytuesday said:

June 07, 2008

we want to create more specific content on Wikivorce for people in Scotland

- brilliant, and much needed, as our divorce laws differ greatly from those in England/Wales.

we plan to develop a national network of local divorce support groups, in partnership with a national charity, and plan to use some of the income to train local group leaders and to subsidise the costs so that people on low incomes can attend

- good to see that the revenues raised will be helping everyone, but especially those in our community that need the most help and support

It appears as though there are exciting times ahead in Wiki-world, and we will all benefit from them, one way or another - a huge thank you to you from me.

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redoctober said:

June 07, 2008
		Having just read the wealth of wonderful proposals for the future of Wikivorce, let me first congratulate the Wiki team for their initiatives. I think that even Ian did not imagine at the beginning that a 'simple' website could be instrumental in changing so many peoples' lives. From tiny acorns.... I would like to help in two specific areas : - the structure of the chatrooms. I have been on there long enough to know how it works ( and boy, does it work to let off steam and not feel isolated ! ) and also how confusing it can be for newcomers. What I suggest is a kind of 'concierge' or 'drop-in' service where some of us 'oldies' could just be there to listen to new people and guide them to other services if need be. I am sure the beloved and ever present Mish will also be up for it! - the local support divorce groups. I would be really interested in helping to set up such a structure in the London area, as it would be a) a unique opportunity to pass on to others the tremendous help I have received here and b) something I think I would be good at from a qualifications and life experience point of view. On a very personal note : I have been moved to tears by the generosity of wiki members who I turned to for help. When I asked them what I could do as a 'thank you', the answer has invariably been : just pass the knowledge on to the next person in need. I think that says it all Red XX

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DIY Divorce said:

June 07, 2008
		As i am a self-repper, it is this side of things i am most interested in. May i suggest an area where all court forms (in their sequence) may be downloaded with the guidance notes specifically for the self-reppers? Broken up into The Children, The Divorce, The Finances. Also, i have only found out thinks like interim spousal maintenance exists due to Amanda chipping in. It would really be nice to see some filler advise entwined with the major steps. So FH applied for and the date has been set. In between the two, some guidance on spousal maintenance would have been great. Amanda has offered me oral and written examples of how a statment should be set out. If general guidelines could be downloaded, that would be cracking! Finally, a downloadable list of legal terms, phrases and words with definitions please? For a long time i did not know the difference between a barrister and a solicitor, or some of the latin phrases i have read. I have some of the information on my desktop already like Ex160 guidance notes (fee remission) and a few others, so if you need them, which i am certain you dont, i'll be happy to send what i have over, and search down the others. I know that this is a big ask, and you have a lot on your plate, but i firmly believe that taking some of the mystique out of the paperwork, sequence of events and adding practicle downloadable information will be a great asset to us SR's. GREAT JOB WIKI!!!! Thanks

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happy_at_last said:

June 10, 2008
		Hi i think the legal sevices is a great idea...For those of us that go in the chat we see what people are really like coming out of their marriages and facing divorce...its a very scary prospect...these people are confused and dont know where to turn too..they are really desperate some of them...(most actually) they are terrified of the thought of solicitors and how much the divorce is going to cost, they come on here asking for advice...wiki is a salvation to most people..some people have spent as much as 17k and are still not divorced...so if wiki can offer low cost divorce services or even reasonable divorce services...i say good on them...its about time some one did, because solicitors charge what they want and take advantage of people in vunrable and scary situations.. Think of the people this could and will help! This is a totally free run site for the members.. Good on you Wiki Lizann

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Robert1977 said:

June 10, 2008
		I could not have got this far....respondant in divorce to an almost negotiated settlement without the support from this site. My ex wife's solicitor sends me letters so full of errors. (Like the CSA would take £573 pcm...which was worked out using my GROSS income and no consideration to the nights the children are with me...such a basic thing for a Family Law solicitor to get wrong). So I am pleased to not be paying someone who may very well be making a hash of things like my ex wife's is. And am pleased to be able to realise these mistakes. As a reactive self repper, I can relate to DIYDivorce's comments on general navigation, procedures, forms and perhaps examples of how to write and structure things. What to expect and in what order, especially as I have found the best way through this is to cope with each stage as it comes. Sometimes I wonder if I have missed something or what to expect next. Thank you so much for everything.

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