‘I’m desperate’: the Britons facing court alone who rely on helpline support

Johanna, who is dyslexic, has been helped by the service for several years to navigate child arrangements and a divorce. Photograph: Fabio De Paola/The Guardian

“I’ve just found this letter and it says my son is being evicted at 9.30 tomorrow morning,” a mother says down the phone line, the panic rising in her voice. “I don’t know what to do. He’s in dire straits.”

It is already 4pm and the volunteer in a Birmingham call centre has to advise her what to do next.