The breakdown of a relationship can often be painful. Many of us find it difficult to discuss emotive issues such as arrangements for our children or financial concerns

Family Mediation is a positive way to resolve issues arising from relationship breakdown by utilising the skills of a trained third party to help guide you through.

Burd Ward is one of just a handful of firms offering this service to families from across Wirral from its offices on Seaview Road in Wallasey.

Headed by Victoria Syvret who is a fully trained member of the National Family Mediation service, Burd Ward’s Family Law team have the experience and empathy to ensure you receive the very best advice.

As a fully qualified Mediator and Family Law Solicitor, Victoria uses her knowledge of the law and skills as a mediator to assist people who are dealing with a breakdown of a relationship. This can help couples reach the most practical decisions possible for themselves and their families.

Can you explain a bit more about the process Victoria?

Family Mediation is an effective and less expensive way of finding agreement than solely using solicitors and the courts. Making a strong, lasting agreement in a family dispute is particularly important as the decisions made now will affect you, your family and your children for many years to come. If you apply to court to resolve your issues you may be expected to have already attempted mediation. The court might decide to refer you back to a mediator if it feels that mediation could help to provide a solution.

What can couples talk about?

Family Mediation is a positive way to resolve issues arising from relationship breakdown. The kind of issues you might need to discuss includes:

• looking after your children
• what will happen to your home
• sharing your money and other assets
• financial support

The mediator will never take sides and will lead the discussion to help you look forward and find a positive solution.
Mediation can help any couple or former couple, whether married or unmarried, male and female or same sex, with or without children.

How does it work?

In the first instance we will book you a pre-mediation Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting (or MIAM) to help you decide if mediation is right for you. You can attend this together or separately but you both need to have attended an appointment before proceeding to mediation.

So if you need help, or just want to investigate if Mediation is the right route for you, book a FREE pre-Mediation assessment with Victoria today and start making the right steps today to ensure a brighter tomorrow for your family.

Legal Aid is available in certain cases, so make sure you ask when making your appointment.

Burd Ward – Good Honest Law for Wirral 0151 639 8273

Wallasey based Solicitors Burd Ward have had a busy start to the year. As well as seeing a 10% increase in the number of house sales, the expert team have been helping home buyers from across Merseyside via a series of live events and workshops.

The team, who boast many years of combined experience in this field were on hand at last weekend’s Home Buyers event at the Echo Arena, offering useful tips and advice to clients looking to buy, sell or let their properties.

Conveyancing specialist and Trainee Solicitor David Dobbins explained

Buying or selling your home can be a very stressful time, so we really try and demystify the whole process for clients. From initial instruction to final completion, we keep clients informed at every level and try and speed up the process where possible. Events like the Home Show are a great opportunity to get out into the market, meet clients and offer some good, honest advice that can really help.

As the market recovers Wirral is seeing particularly rapid growth in house sales and its important that clients get sound legal advice and work with a team they know they can rely on. All of our clients enjoy the benefit of working with one dedicated point of contact all of whom are experts in Property Law, so they know they are in safe hands.

If you are looking to buy, sell or let your property or just need some advice on any type of property matter, contact David and the team today on 0151 639 8273 or go to www.burdward.co.uk.

Making a Will or setting up a Lasting Power of Attorney can be a worrying task. Planning for the future and taking care of our loved ones is something we all should do but so often gets left by the wayside.

Failure to plan your affairs in the form of a Will can have a devastating effect on your family and loved ones and everyone should make provision for the future – particularly if you own property.

We have been helping people plan their future affairs for over ten years here on Wirral and have a dedicated team of experts on hand to guide you through the process.

Recently awarded the coveted Quality Mark for Wills and Inheritance, our team have unparalleled experience in this area as well as a sensible pricing structure, whatever your circumstances.

Director and Wills expert Victoria Syvret commented

We recognise the importance of planning for the future and would encourage everyone to think about setting up a Will. We have an extremely friendly, flexible approach here at Burd Ward and are happy to meet clients out of hours or even in their home if this makes the process easier.

Don’t leave until tomorrow what you can do today. Book an appointment with the team today.

ENJOY TODAY PLAN FOR TOMORROW

PEACE OF MIND FOR YOU AND YOUR FAMILY WITH GOOD HONEST LAW

Journalist Jade Wright joined pupils at Liscard Primary School to celebrate National Storytelling Week last Friday as they were treated to a collection of new books thanks to a local Law firm.

Wallasey based solicitors Burd Ward presented the school with over thirty new books as part of their community initiative to promote literacy. Jade then treated a group of lucky pupils to an impromptu storytelling session from a range of classic tales and top children’s titles.

Burd Ward Director Michael Ward commented

We really value the work of our local schools and have been actively looking for ways in which we can help enrich children’s learning experiences. Liscard Primary is the nearest school to our Head Office and they have an outstanding commitment to literacy, so we thought this was a really worthwhile project to support.

Liscard Primary School Literacy Coordinator Leanne Quarry- Ellis went on to say

The children had a fantastic morning with Jade and the Burd Ward team. We are overwhelmed with the new collection of books and I am sure they will give pupils hours of enjoyment for years to come..

PR Contact: Paula Brown • paula@viewwirral.com • 07506452381

Burd Ward Solicitor’s housing law specialist Paula Suckley reassures families who are in danger of losing their homes…

If you have received letters from your mortgage company or landlord threatening to take you to court or even received papers from the court then you MUST seek legal advice.

The under occupation charge, otherwise known as the bedroom tax, has seen possession cases rocket in recent months.

Many people are frightened that appointing a solicitor to act on their behalf could be hugely costly if they are not eligible for public funding.

Help is at hand

Don’t worry unnecessarily we understand that financial problems can happen to the best of us; that is why the FREE Duty Solicitor service at Birkenhead County Court is such a key lifeline for many households. This service is available to all, regardless of income or individual circumstances.

If you have received papers from the court and are worried about attending then please rest assured that this scheme has been helping local people keep hold of their homes for many years. So make sure you turn up and get the vital help that you need.

We would highly recommend that you attend court where we, as Duty Solicitors will be able to offer you the FREE, expert legal advice and representation which will increase the chance of you keeping the roof above your head your home.

Here at Burd Ward Solicitors we have recently been awarded the contract for the Duty Solicitors Scheme and will be in attendance in court to assist you every step of the way. We are also happy to offer you some initial friendly, reliable advice prior to your hearing. Contact paulasuckley@burdward.co.uk today

Newlyweds Vicky and Mark from New Brighton had finally found the home of their dreams and as first time buyers, they couldn’t wait to get hold of the keys and move in.

Unfamiliar with complicated processes or the jargon used during property transactions, the couple needed an extra bit of support to help guide them through their first purchase.

Experienced conveyancing expert Michaela Barker hand-held the couple through the initial stages and helped speed the process up by liasing with both the seller and Lender. As members of the Quality Conveyancing Scheme Burd Ward is specially accredited by the Law Society and as such can act for all of the major lenders. This really helps to speed up the process at every level and keeps the buyers in the driving seat.

Just two months after finding their new home, Vicky and Mark had the keys in their hands and were ready to start their new lives together.

The team at Burd Ward could not have been more helpful. It was really scary buying our first home , but Michaela and the team were there every step of the way. We are expecting our first baby in the summer so we may even be on the move again soon!

Email Michaela Barker at mb@burdward.co.uk if you would like help with your first time purchase.

We are delighted to announce that we will be supporting Age UK as our nominated charity for 2014.

As our population continues to live longer it is vital to support the older community and Age UK is the UK’s leading charity for this area.

From fundraising to practical help and critical research into areas such as Dementia, Age UK are delivering help and support for older members of society across the UK. As they are solely funded by donations they need all the support they can get, so a very worthwhile cause in every respect.

Director Michael Ward commented

Our Charity of the Year partnership with Age UK is a fantastic way to motivate and unite your staff and reach out to the local community whilst helping us raise vital funds and awareness for a really worthy cause. We really believe that together we can help transform the lives of older people – we look forward to your support!

Keep your eye on our website for details of how you can get involved with our year of support.

We are delighted to be celebrating ten successful years in business with the launch of a brand new look. We have undergone a major re-brand with a new logo, refreshed corporate colours and impressive new signage at our Seaview Road offices.

As a full service Law firm, we offer a variety of legal services including Personal Injury, Wills and Probate and Housing issues and are specialist providers in all areas concerning Family Law, Children’s Law and Mediation.

Director Michael Ward commented

We wanted to mark our anniversary by doing something special and this seemed like the perfect way to celebrate ten years in business as well as acting as a launch pad to take the firm forward in coming years. We are still the same firm, offering the same level of quality legal advice to our clients on Wirral and beyond.