What is a McKenzie Friend?

A McKenzie Friend is a person who supports a litigant in person in court by taking notes, helping with paperwork and offering practical and moral support. They are not a solicitor and do not provide legal representation unless the court grants additional rights.

Can I go to family court without a solicitor?

Yes. Many people represent themselves in UK family court as litigants in person. Bridge The Gap shares community observations and resources to help you understand the process. It does not provide legal advice.

What is Bridge The Gap?

Bridge The Gap is a community-built platform by litigants and McKenzie Friends that highlights the gaps between what people assume about family court and what actually happens.

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Family Court Reality

Brand & Social Media Guidelines

Everything needed to make a post, card or banner look unmistakably Bridge the Gap — the wordmark, the palette, the type and the sizes.

Version 1.0 · October 2026

Logo & wordmark

The wordmark and the name are the primary brand assets. Give them room and never redraw or retype them.

Clear space around the mark = the height of the capital B, on every side. On photography, place it on a solid Parchment, Card Cream or Forest Shadow panel first.

Colour palette

Warm parchment grounds, deep forest greens for structure, and a single gold for emphasis. Click any swatch to copy its hex value.

Typography

Two typefaces carry the whole brand. Use them together, never a third.

Headings & display

Cormorant Garamond

Weights 400 · 500 · 600 · 700

A warm serif with quiet authority. Use sentence case. Never stretch, outline or heavy letter-space it.

Body & interface

Inter

Weights 300 · 400 · 500 · 600

Clean and highly legible. Minimum 28 px on social images so it still reads on a phone.

Social media formats

Publish at these sizes so nothing is cropped or softened by the platform.

FormatPixelsRatioBest for

Feed square1080 × 10801:1Instagram and Facebook feed posts
Feed portrait1080 × 13504:5Highest reach in Instagram and Facebook feeds
Story / Reel1080 × 19209:16Instagram Stories, Reels, WhatsApp Status
TikTok video1080 × 19209:16TikTok — keep text out of the top 220 px and bottom 320 px
LinkedIn post1200 × 12001:1LinkedIn feed image
LinkedIn banner1584 × 3964:1LinkedIn page header
Facebook cover1640 × 6242.6:1Facebook page cover
X / Twitter1600 × 90016:9X post image
WhatsApp banner1920 × 108016:9Broadcast and group headers

Keep all text and the logo inside the middle 84% of a 9:16 frame — the edges are covered by platform controls. On TikTok, leave the top 220 px and bottom 320 px clear.

Voice, do’s and don’ts

How we sound matters as much as how we look. Readers are mid-crisis; calm accuracy is the brand.

Observational, not advisory

Describe what courts actually do, not what someone must do. “What to expect” over “you need to”.

Calm and steady

Readers are often frightened. Inform and steady them — never alarm them.

Plain English

Short sentences, and explain any legal term in the same breath.

Anonymous by default

No names, places, ages or details that could identify a family.

Do

Keep one clear brand cue on every post — the wordmark or the words “Bridge the Gap”.
Leave clear space around the logo equal to the height of the capital B.
Use Parchment or Card Cream behind text — never pure white.
Set body copy at 28 px or larger on social images so it reads on a phone.
Label McKenzie Friend commentary as “McKenzie Friend / Family Court Support”.
Keep the legal disclaimer on anything that touches court process.

Don’t

Do not stretch, squash, rotate or recolour the logo.
Do not place the logo straight onto busy photography — add a solid or scrimmed panel first.
Do not use pure black or pure white as a background.
Do not set sentences in all caps — reserve caps for short kickers.
Do not identify families, courts or individuals in any image or caption.
Do not present commentary as legal advice.