How much does mediation cost in the UK?
Family mediation in the UK commonly costs £130–£170 per person per hour, with the initial MIAM around £115–£180 plus VAT — and a £500 government voucher covers child-arrangement mediation for eligible cases. Small claims mediation is free: for money claims of £10,000 or less, HMCTS runs the mediation at no charge. For a simple two-party money dispute, AI mediation costs $5 a seat.
Figures last reviewed 2026-07-14. Fees vary by mediator, matter, and region — check the official sources below for current rates where you live.
Mediation costs in the UK at a glance
The Family Mediation Council’s commonly cited range per person per hour for sessions and drafting, varying by region and by what’s in dispute.
The Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting each person attends before family court proceedings. Free if you qualify for legal aid; the £500 voucher doesn’t cover it.
The Family Mediation Voucher Scheme contributes up to £500 towards mediation in eligible child-arrangement cases — one voucher per family, through FMC-authorised mediators, while funding lasts.
For money claims of £10,000 or less, you’re told you must attend mediation — and HMCTS organises it at no charge. Larger claims may be offered court mediation or use paid private mediators.
A contested financial hearing commonly costs upwards of £20,000 per person in solicitor and barrister fees, plus court fees — against a full course of mediation costing a few hundred to a couple of thousand pounds each.
The Negotiately Mediator charges a flat $5 a seat for a two-party money-and-conditions dispute; each side pays its own. No hourly meter, no waiting list.
How to keep mediation costs down, step by step
- 1
Check the free routes before booking anyone
If it’s a money claim of £10,000 or less, mediation is free — HMCTS runs the Small Claims Mediation Service and you’ll be required to attend anyway. If it’s a family matter and you’re on a low income, legal aid can make mediation free entirely, and if your ex-partner qualifies, your MIAM and first session are free too. Paying privately before checking eligibility is the most common way to overspend.
- 2
Claim the £500 voucher for child arrangements
The Family Mediation Voucher Scheme contributes up to £500 towards mediation in eligible cases involving children. It’s not means-tested, but it’s one voucher per family, it doesn’t cover the MIAM, and it only runs while funding lasts — so ask your FMC-registered mediator to apply it before your first joint session, not after.
- 3
Try AI mediation first for a two-party money dispute
For a dispute that’s two parties and money — a deposit, an unpaid invoice, a private sale — an AI mediator at $5 a seat is the cheap first step. Each side gives its real bottom line in confidence, and guards enforced in code check every proposal against both sealed limits before anything is shared. If it settles, you’ve spent about the price of a coffee each; if not, the free and formal routes are all still open.
- 4
Formalise the outcome cheaply
A mediated family agreement becomes binding when a solicitor turns it into a consent order and the court approves it — a fixed, modest cost compared with solicitors negotiating the deal itself. For money disputes, a short written settlement (or the Deal Memo from an AI mediation) does the recording; you only pay for legal drafting once the numbers are already agreed.
What drives mediation cost in the UK
The bill turns on three things: the type of dispute, who mediates it, and how many sessions it takes. Family mediation commonly runs £130–£170 per person per hour, with London and senior mediators at the top end, and most separations need several joint sessions — so a full course typically lands between a few hundred and a couple of thousand pounds per person, plus the MIAM each of you attends first. Civil and commercial mediation is usually priced per party per half-day or day, rising with the claim value. What keeps UK costs distinctive is how much of the middle is subsidised: free small claims mediation, legal aid for family mediation, and the £500 voucher all exist precisely because mediation is so much cheaper than the £20,000-plus per person a contested hearing commonly costs.
The free and subsidised routes, in detail
Three schemes do the heavy lifting. First, the HMCTS Small Claims Mediation Service: for money claims of £10,000 or less you’re told you must attend mediation, and the court organises it free — a one-hour telephone appointment with a trained mediator. Second, legal aid: if you qualify on income, family mediation is free, and if only your ex-partner qualifies, your MIAM and first joint session are covered too. Third, the Family Mediation Voucher Scheme: up to £500 towards child-arrangement mediation, not means-tested, applied by FMC-authorised mediators while funding lasts. If your dispute fits any of these, use them first — nothing paid competes with free.
Where a $5 AI mediator honestly fits
The Negotiately Mediator is one impartial AI between two parties. Each side tells it their real bottom line in confidence; those numbers are sealed and never shared. The guards are enforced in code — every proposal is checked against both sealed limits before it crosses the middle, and shared messages are screened so neither side’s figures can leak. When both sides accept, a Deal Memo records the terms in plain English; it’s not a binding contract, so a consent order or solicitor-drafted settlement still does the formalising. At $5 a seat it fits two-party money-and-conditions disputes: deposits, invoices, private sales, splitting shared costs. It is not a MIAM and doesn’t satisfy the requirement to consider mediation before family proceedings — and complex, emotional, or multi-party matters belong with a human mediator. It’s the cheap, fast first step, not a replacement for the system around it.
Mediation costs in the UK: FAQs
Compare your options
Or mediate for $5 a seat
For a two-party dispute that comes down to money: sealed bottom lines, an impartial middle, and a Deal Memo when you agree.