Parental responsibility meaning

Stop Press: On 31 March 2026, the President of the Family Division, Sir Andrew McFarlane, released consolidated guidance on allocation and gatekeeping for children proceedings in the Family Court, coming into force on 5 May 2026. This replaces the 2014 public and private law guidance and establishes a single framework for allocation across all children cases. It clarifies the functions of gatekeeping teams, aligns allocation choices with contemporary procedural pathways (including Child Focused Courts), and underscores key principles of judicial continuity, proportionality and the efficient deployment of judicial resources, see News Analysis: Consolidated allocation and gatekeeping guidance for children proceedings issued. This Procedural Guide is presently being revised to align with the President’s guidance. It outlines the procedure for applications under section 8 of the Children Act 1989 for a specific issue order to resolve a particular question connected with parental responsibility, or a prohibited steps order limiting the exercise of parental responsibility in a defined respect. It also details who may apply, pre-action obligations, the principles the...

Procedural Guide This Procedural Guide explains the steps for making an application under the Children Act 1989 (ChA 1989) for a parental responsibility order. It sets out who holds parental responsibility, who may apply—such as unmarried fathers, step-parents and female parents—and the pre-action requirements. It also summarises the principles the court applies, the directions it can issue, the presumption of parental involvement, the rules on service, and how long an order lasts. Under the ChA 1989, parental responsibility means the full range of rights, duties, powers, responsibilities and authority that the law gives a child’s parent in relation to the child and the child’s property. Parental responsibility can be obtained in several ways, including: By agreement; By an order of the court. In some situations, people who are neither parents nor step-parents may acquire parental responsibility as a result of other orders. More than one person can hold parental responsibility for the same child at the same time. A parent...

Removing a child from the jurisdiction Taking a child out of the jurisdiction without the necessary consent(s) can constitute an offence under the Child Abduction Act 1984 (CAA 1984). Refer to the Practice Note titled: Child abduction—criminal action and electronic tagging. Where there is no existing child arrangements order (CAO) in force regulating the child’s living arrangements, the requisite consent must be obtained in advance of removing the child from the jurisdiction from the following: each person with parental responsibility the father (whether or not he has parental responsibility for the child) Failure to do so creates a risk of breaching CAA 1984 and/or the Hague Convention on Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. If a CAO is in place regulating the child’s living arrangements, section 13 of the Children Act 1989 (ChA 1989) provides that a child may not be removed from the UK without either the written consent of every person with parental responsibility or the court’s leave....

EF v LM and another [2024] EWHC 922 (Fam), [2024] All ER (D) 23 (May) What are the practical implications of this case? This ruling underscores the intricate questions surrounding consent in relation to transgender adolescents and children. From 16 up to, but not yet 18, a young person may consent to medical treatment under section 8 of the Family Law Reform Act 1969, without needing approval from a parent or guardian. The judgment, however, calls into question whether that autonomy alone sufficiently protects the young person’s best interests. Although the court retains power to step in and set aside a young person’s consent where the decision is grave enough to justify intervention (Re W (A Minor) (Consent to Medical Treatment) [1993] 1 FLR 1), this case sharpens the issue of when judicial intervention should occur. It also starkly illustrates the hazards of treatment obtained from unaccredited providers: after care by Gender GP, the child’s testosterone reached a dangerously elevated level, placing them at risk of sudden death...

In this issue: Public children Financial provision Private children Court of Protection Daily and weekly news alerts New content Updated content New Q&As LexTalk®Family: a Lexis®Nexis community Useful information Public children Suspected Inflicted Head Injury Service (SIHIS) for children pilot Three NHS Trusts—Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham Children’s Hospital and Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust—have received funding to launch pilots and evaluate a new Suspected Inflicted Head Injury Service (SIHIS). The service is designed to tackle delays arising from late and multiple expert medical statements. The trial will assess how this model can drive lasting, system-wide improvements that cut delay, with the pilot scheduled to conclude on 31 March 2025... Anonymisation (Re T (Children: Publication of Judgment)) In Re T (Children: Publication of Judgment) [2024] EWCA Civ 697, [2024] All ER (D) 79 (Jun), the Court of Appeal upheld the mother’s appeal against a decision concerning the publication of a...

In this issue: Practice and procedure Relationship breakdown Financial provision Private children Public children International children Enforcement Daily and weekly news alerts Updated content Useful information Practice and procedure Family Procedure Rule Committee meeting minutes The Family Procedure Rule Committee has published the official minutes of its meeting held on 9 December 2024. Arbitration Bill approved and now pending Royal Assent The UK Parliament has completed its consideration of the Arbitration Bill in full. Scrutiny by the committee of the whole House of Commons resulted in no amendments whatsoever. Thereafter, the Bill received its third reading and passed without alteration. The Arbitration Bill now formally awaits Royal Assent. See: LNB News 12/02/2025 46. Relationship breakdown Existence of a marriage (Ms Z v Mr Z) In Ms Z v Mr Z [2025] EWHC 276 (Fam), the parties were married in accordance with Islamic customs on 4 August 1999. They...

This Practice Note outlines the concept of parental responsibility for children under section 3 of the Children Act 1989 (ChA 1989). It describes what sits within the scope of parental responsibility and how the courts have read this concept in connection with matters such as education, religious upbringing, consent to medical treatment, changing a child’s surname, and removing a child from the jurisdiction. Definition Parental responsibility relates to the care and raising of a child until they reach adulthood. Under the ChA 1989, parental responsibility comprises all the rights, duties, powers, responsibilities and authority that, in law, a parent holds in respect of their child and the child’s property. It also embraces the rights, powers and duties that a guardian of the child’s estate (appointed before the ChA 1989 commenced) possessed in relation to the child’s property. Those rights extend to receiving or recovering, in the guardian’s own name for the child’s benefit, property of any description and wherever located to which the child is entitled to receive...

Client guides Client guides comprise template letters covering a broad spectrum of family law matters, suitable for sending directly by the family practitioner to the client. Each guide also features drafting commentary for practitioners and hyperlinks to relevant connected materials, such as Practice Notes, forms, authorities, precedents and legislation. For procedural guides offering step-by-step direction on, inter alia, domestic abuse, asset preservation, relationship breakdown, cohabitants, private children, financial provision, international cases and enforcement, refer to Practice Note: Family procedural guides...

Practice Note This Practice Note sets out a local authority’s obligation to secure accommodation for children under section 20 of the Children Act 1989 (ChA 1989) and describes voluntary accommodation under ChA 1989, s 20, highlighting the practical difficulties an authority may encounter, such as arranging suitable delegation of parental authority and questions regarding parental capacity. Please note this Practice Note concerns the law currently applicable in England. In Wales, the position is governed by the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 and associated statutory instruments; for further material, see Practice Notes: Local authority powers and duties to provide accommodation for children in Wales, Local authority duties to looked after children in Wales, and Local authority duties to children in Wales—child protection. Under section 20 of the Children Act 1989—ChA 1989, s 20—every local authority is under a duty to accommodate children assessed as children in need living in its area who appear to need accommodation due to specified circumstances set out in legislation. A range of considerations...

From : [ insert full previous name of the person executing the deed ] To : [ insert full new name of the person executing the deed ] This Deed of change of name is entered into on the [ insert date and month ] 20[ insert year ] by me, the undersigned [ insert full new name of the person executing the deed ], of [ insert full address of the person executing the deed ]...

This document offers general guidance on parental responsibility for a child. Your family lawyer will be able to give specific advice tailored to your circumstances. What is parental responsibility? Parental responsibility is defined in law by the Children Act 1989 as all the rights, duties, powers, responsibilities and authority that a parent holds in relation to a child and the child’s property. Anyone who has parental responsibility is entitled to be involved in significant decisions concerning the child, including: where the child is to live which school they should attend whether the child should follow any religion (if at all) the name the child should use consenting to or refusing medical treatment managing the child’s money or property Parental responsibility does not allow a person to interfere with ordinary, day-to-day choices such as clothing, hobbies, or preferred TV programmes. Generally, parental responsibility continues until the child turns 18, although it may end earlier if the child is...

From : [ insert child's previous forename and surname ] To : [ insert child's new forename and surname ] This Deed of Change of Name is made on the [ insert date and month ] 20[ insert year ] by me, undersigned [ insert full name of the person with parental responsibility who is to make the change to the child’s name ], of [ insert full address ], as the [ insert parental relationship to child ] of [ insert child's new forename and surname ], now or lately known as [ insert child's previous forename and surname ], a minor aged [ insert child's age ] year [ s ], on behalf of the said [ insert child's new forename and surname ]...

When a baby is born, the birth must be registered, and the surname entered at that time is intended to be the name by which the child is known. If a parent later wishes to change the child’s surname, they should first consult any other person who holds parental responsibility before any step is taken. This applies irrespective of the existence of a child arrangements order, and regardless of whether that person has contact with the child (Re PC (Change of Surname)). Where there is disagreement, the matter must be placed before the court for a determination. A contested change of surname must not be made unilaterally (Dawson v Wearmouth). Altering a name is a significant matter and should not be approached lightly. In deciding whether to grant leave, the court is guided by the welfare principle in section 1(1) of the Children Act 1989 (ChA 1989), and will act accordingly...

Section 12(2A) of the Children Act 1989 (ChA 1989) Inserted by paragraph 21(4) of Schedule 2, Part 1 of the Children and Families Act 2014 (CFA 2014), Section 12(2A) of the Children Act 1989 (ChA 1989) came into force on 22 April 2014. This statutory amendment to ChA 1989, s 12 expressly empowers the court to confer parental responsibility on an individual who is neither a parent nor a guardian of the child, but who is identified in a relevant child arrangements order (CAO) as a person with whom the child spends time or otherwise has contact. Any parental responsibility granted under ChA 1989, s 12(2A) endures only for as long as the corresponding CAO currently remains operative. Although the provision has been operative for more than two years, there seem to be no reported cases that consider ChA 1989, s 12(2A)...

Parental responsibility Parental responsibility, as defined in section 3(1) of the Children Act 1989 (ChA 1989) itself, means all the rights, duties, powers, responsibilities and authority which, by law, a parent has regarding the child and his property. Anyone with parental responsibility is, as a matter of right, entitled to copies of both medical records and school reports, and the surgery or school should provide these...