ABOUT
My name is Beverley McCluskey and I set up McCluskey Mediation in 2017 in Knutsford Cheshire. I am an experienced family mediator and solicitor with over twenty years' experience of practising exclusively family law.
I am currently based in Knutsford however I am mobile and will travel within the Manchester and Cheshire area. I have specialised in dealing with all aspects of family law including divorce, civil partnership dissolution, children disputes (including acting for grandparents), financial disputes, cohabitation issues and separation agreements.
As a solicitor, I was always wholly committed to finding alternatives to court having witnessed first-hand the devastating effect court can have on families both financially and emotionally. I therefore first trained as a Collaborative Solicitor in 2005. As with mediation, Collaborative law is based on negotiation and involves meetings with the couple and both of their solicitors to help them reach a reasonable settlement for them both. Both clients and solicitors agree at the outset that they will not go to court which is a strong incentive to reach agreement.
I then trained as a Family Law Mediator in 2012 with the Family Mediator Association. I have subsequently been accredited by both the Family Mediation Council and the Law Society. I am also an Approved Mediator for Resolution (formerly Solicitor's Family Law Association).
As your mediator, I will do my utmost to help you reach an outcome that is acceptable to you both, is child focused and avoids court proceedings saving you time and money thereby enabling you to move forward more quickly. I also believe that crucially I can help a couple maintain trust (which can be eroded by the court process) and help with communication which is essential for effective future parenting. I understand it is unlikely that divorcing/separating couples are going to be the best of friends but if there are children involved whether you like it or not you are still going to be parents for the rest of your lives and I can help you both consider your parenting role moving forward and assist in the preparation of a Parenting Plan, if appropriate.
My approach is to be both sensitive and empathetic but at the same time I try to be also sensible and pragmatic. I hope by giving you clear impartial legal information, together with practical suggestions about possible options that may work for you and your family in your circumstances, I can help you reach acceptable agreements for you and your family. My focus is on minimising conflict between separating couples.
