Family, Private Children and Public Children
Barrister
Naomi was called to the Bar in 2016 after achieving a First Class undergraduate degree in Law from the University of Birmingham. She has since developed a substantial and sophisticated children law practice spanning both public and private law and is regularly instructed in cases considerably beyond her year of call.
Naomi was named Worcestershire Law Society Barrister of the Year 2024, securing the award in a competitive field which included barristers considerably more senior than her. The award reflects the level at which Naomi has practised from an early stage in her career and her reputation amongst solicitors, the judiciary and fellow practitioners.
Naomi has also been recognised by the Legal 500 in four consecutive editions: 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026. Her earlier Legal 500 recommendations describe her as “conscientious, thorough, and well organised” and as “a truly excellent children’s barrister and very much a rising star”, highlighting her preparation, advocacy and exceptional attention to detail.
Naomi is regularly instructed in complex, multi-day fact-finding and final hearings, including cases requiring extensive cross-examination of medical, psychological and social-work experts. She has appeared both led and unled in cases involving exceptionally serious allegations and has frequently appeared against counsel ten or twenty years more senior than her.
Public Children
Naomi has developed a particularly strong practice representing local authorities, parents, children and interveners in complex public law proceedings.
She has considerable experience of cases concerning serious non-accidental injury and complex medical evidence, including proceedings involving babies and young children who have sustained significant fractures, including skull fractures.
In WCC v B [2024], Naomi represented the local authority at a five-day fact-finding hearing involving a clavicle fracture and a linear parietal skull fracture. The paediatrician and radiologist differed as to whether the injuries were accidental or inflicted. The case required Naomi to master detailed paediatric and radiological evidence and extensively cross-examine both medical experts on areas ordinarily encountered by considerably more senior counsel.
Naomi has also been instructed in highly sensitive cases involving allegations of sexual abuse of young children. Her experience includes successfully representing interveners in multi-day fact-finding hearings concerning allegations of sexual abuse, requiring detailed analysis of the evidence and careful, sensitive cross-examination.
Her wider public law practice includes cases involving:
serious non-accidental injuries;
skull and other fractures sustained by babies and young children;
complex and conflicting paediatric and radiological evidence;
allegations of sexual abuse of young children;
representation of interveners in complex fact-finding hearings;
fabricated or induced illness;
the death of a child;
parents who lack litigation capacity and are represented through the Official Solicitor;
parents with significant learning disabilities;
deprivation of liberty issues concerning children;
psychiatric and psychological evidence;
vulnerable children and adults; and jurisdictional and designation issues.
Naomi regularly appears in the High Court and has successfully argued issues concerning designation at High Court level. She has also been instructed as junior counsel in exceptionally serious proceedings concerning the death of a baby, where she was significantly more junior than the other advocates involved.
Naomi has developed an equally strong practice representing parents within care proceedings. She has particular experience of representing parents with significant learning disabilities and other vulnerabilities, working closely with intermediaries to ensure effective participation in multi-day hearings.
In one multi-day final hearing, Naomi undertook a detailed challenge to a local authority concerning the support provided to a parent with substantial learning disabilities. The judge praised Naomi's “painstaking analysis” and recorded in the written judgment that her client could not have been “better represented”.
Private Children
Naomi has a substantial and highly developed private children practice. She regularly represents parents, children, interveners and members of the wider family in protracted and exceptionally difficult proceedings.
She is frequently instructed in multi-day fact-finding and final hearings involving serious allegations of sexual abuse, physical abuse, domestic abuse, alienating behaviours and implacable hostility. She has experience both successfully advancing and successfully resisting allegations that one parent has deliberately undermined or obstructed the child's relationship with the other.
Naomi has particular experience of cases where entrenched parental conflict and allegations of alienating behaviours or implacable hostility intersect with the neurodiversity of the child, a parent or both parents. Such cases require careful consideration of whether behaviour, communication or presentation has been properly understood by professionals and whether appropriate adjustments have been made.
Naomi is skilled at identifying circumstances in which autism, ADHD or other neurodevelopmental differences may affect the evidential picture, family dynamics, communication between parent and child, or the manner in which a parent or child has been assessed by professionals. She is experienced in cross-examining guardians, social workers and other experts where conclusions may have been reached without sufficient consideration of neurodiversity.
In F v R [2023], Naomi represented a mother during a five-day final hearing in longstanding private children proceedings involving allegations that she had alienated the child from the father. Professional evidence supported the allegations. Naomi successfully challenged that evidence through cross-examination of the father and the children's guardian and resisted both the findings sought and a proposed change of the child's living arrangements.
A significant feature of that case was the mother's autism and whether her presentation had been properly understood by the professionals involved. Naomi successfully argued that insufficient consideration had been given to the mother's neurodiversity and the necessary adjustments. The court ultimately declined to make the alienation findings sought.
Naomi's broader private law experience includes:
multi-day fact-finding hearings concerning allegations of sexual abuse of children;
allegations of physical and emotional abuse;
domestic abuse and coercive and controlling behaviour;
alienating behaviours and implacable hostility;
entrenched and high-conflict parental disputes;
transfer of living arrangements;
internal and international relocation;
complex safeguarding issues;
neurodiversity of children and parents;
autism and ADHD;
vulnerable parties;
psychiatric and psychological evidence; and
cross-examination of psychologists, social workers and children's guardians.
Naomi combines robust trial advocacy with an ability to establish a strong rapport with clients, including those who are vulnerable or neurodivergent. She is particularly recognised for her detailed preparation and her ability to analyse large and complicated evidential pictures while maintaining a clear focus on the welfare of the child.
Digital Evidence
Alongside her children practice, Naomi has developed a particular professional specialism in digital evidence and its use in family proceedings.
Naomi has delivered a lecture on digital evidence with LexisNexis, reflecting her expertise and growing professional reputation in this developing area.
Following her work in this field, Naomi has been commissioned by a legal publisher to write a book on digital evidence. The commission recognises her experience of both the practical and legal issues surrounding digital material and its increasing significance within modern family litigation.
Her interest encompasses the evidential and practical issues arising from electronic communications, photographs, social-media material and other forms of digitally generated evidence, particularly within children proceedings and contested fact-finding hearings.
Family Law Bar Association – Member
West Midlands Family Law Bar Association – Member
Young Resolution (YRes) – Committee Member
Gray's Inn – Member and Mentor
Midland Circuit – Member
Women in Family Law – Member
Naomi is a committee member of YRes and has been actively involved in professional education. She is organising a cross-professional discussion with the judiciary, the bar and the solicitor profession around kindness and bullying. She has delivered training to Resolution members, including a lecture concerning section 37 directions in private children proceedings.
Naomi is also a mentor at Gray's Inn and regularly contributes to advocacy, ethics and professional-development training. She has assisted with pupillage applications, judged advocacy exercises and mooting competitions and participated in pupillage advice events.
She has been selected by Gray's Inn to sit on Bar Course scholarship interview panels alongside members of the judiciary, King's Counsel and senior members of the Bar. She has also been invited to participate in training events assessing and providing feedback to advocacy trainers.
Naomi regularly contributes to the education of junior members of the profession through the Midland Circuit and is training as an advocacy trainer, universities and No5 Chambers and has assisted with pupillage interviews and Chambers' family-law training programme.
University of Birmingham- 1st class degree 2015
University of Law- BPTC- very competent
Naomi is committed to improving access to the profession and supporting the development of aspiring and junior barristers.
She regularly mentors students and prospective pupils through Gray's Inn and has contributed extensively to advocacy, ethics and careers training.
Naomi maintains particularly strong connections with Worcestershire, where she grew up and continues to live and practise. She regularly supports students at Worcester Sixth Form College and universities in the Midlands, including young people who may face barriers to entering the legal profession.
Her contribution to the Worcestershire legal community was recognised when she was named Worcestershire Law Society Barrister of the Year 2024.
Naomi also regularly contributes to training through No5 Chambers and the Midland Circuit.
Naomi is a keen athlete and plays competitive netball.
She has represented Worcestershire at county level in athletics, including the heptathlon, 100 metres and long jump, and now also enjoys middle-distance running and local 5k and 10k events.
Naomi is also an accomplished musician and has achieved Grade 8 in both piano and violin.