Parental Responsibility: Who Has It and How to Get It

Parental responsibility is the legal term for the rights, duties and authority a parent has for a child. In England and Wales it does not automatically belong to every parent, and understanding who has it, and how it can be gained, matters for major decisions about a child's life.

What Is Parental Responsibility?

Parental responsibility is the legal term, defined in section 3 of the Children Act 1989, for all the rights, duties, powers, responsibilities and authority that a parent has for a child and the child's property. In practice it covers decisions such as where a child goes to school, their medical treatment, their religious upbringing, and consent to significant changes in their life, including taking them abroad. It is separate from living arrangements: a parent can have parental responsibility without the child living with them, and a parent can lose day-to-day care of a child through a court order while keeping parental responsibility. Having parental responsibility does not, by itself, give a right to a particular amount of contact; that is decided separately, for example through a child arrangements order.

Who Has Parental Responsibility in England and Wales

Whether someone automatically has parental responsibility, or has to acquire it, depends on their relationship to the child and, for fathers, on when and how the birth was registered. In England and Wales, the following people can hold parental responsibility for a child:

• The child's birth mother, automatically, in every case.
• A father who was married to, or in a civil partnership with, the mother when the child was born.
• A father named on the birth certificate, for births registered in England and Wales from 1 December 2003 onwards.
• A father who has made a parental responsibility agreement with the mother, or obtained a court order.
• A second female parent, for example the mother's wife or civil partner under the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 rules, by being named as the child's parent on the birth certificate, by agreement, or by court order.
• A step-parent, guardian, or other person named in a child arrangements order or granted parental responsibility by the court.

More than one of these people can hold parental responsibility for the same child at the same time.

The Mother

The child's birth mother has parental responsibility automatically, from the moment the child is born, regardless of whether she was married to the father, how the pregnancy came about, or whether she is currently caring for the child. This is the one category of parental responsibility in England and Wales that is never conditional on marriage, registration, or a later agreement. A mother can lose parental responsibility only in narrow circumstances, chiefly where a child is later adopted by someone else, which ends the birth parents' parental responsibility in favour of the adoptive parents. Separation, divorce, or a child arrangements order that says the child lives with the father does not remove the mother's parental responsibility; she keeps her legal rights and duties toward the child even if she is not the resident parent.

The Father: When Is It Automatic?

A father does not automatically have parental responsibility in England and Wales simply by being named as the biological father. It is automatic in two situations: where he was married to, or in a civil partnership with, the mother at the time of the child's birth, including if they marry afterwards, or where he is named on the child's birth certificate and the birth was registered in England and Wales on or after 1 December 2003. That birth-certificate route does not apply retrospectively to births registered before that date. A father who does not fall into either category, for instance an unmarried father who is not named on the certificate, or whose child's birth was registered before December 2003 without him named, does not have parental responsibility automatically and has to acquire it separately.

The Father: Agreements and Court Orders

A father who does not have parental responsibility automatically can still acquire it in two main ways under section 4 of the Children Act 1989. The first is a parental responsibility agreement, a prescribed form signed by both the mother and father and registered with the court, which requires the mother's consent. The second is a court order, either an application specifically for parental responsibility or an order made alongside other family proceedings, which a court can grant without the mother's agreement if it decides this is in the child's best interests. Re-registering the birth to add the father's name after the child's birth was originally registered without him can also create parental responsibility going forward. Once granted, parental responsibility by agreement or order carries the same legal weight as parental responsibility that arose automatically.

Second Female Parents, Step-Parents and Others

Parental responsibility is not limited to a child's biological mother and father. Where a child has two female parents under the parenthood provisions of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008, for example following fertility treatment, the second female parent can acquire parental responsibility under section 4ZA of the Children Act 1989, in broadly the same ways as an unmarried father: by being married to or in a civil partnership with the birth mother at the relevant time, by being registered as the child's parent on the birth certificate, by agreement, or by court order. A step-parent who is married to, or in a civil partnership with, a parent who has parental responsibility can also acquire it, either by agreement with everyone who already holds parental responsibility or by court order. A special guardian or an adoptive parent acquires parental responsibility through the order that creates that status, and it can sit alongside a birth parent's own parental responsibility.

Can More Than Two People Hold Parental Responsibility?

There is no limit of two on parental responsibility. It is common for three or more people to hold parental responsibility for the same child at once, for example a mother, her former husband as the child's legal father, and a stepfather who later acquired parental responsibility by agreement or order. Each holder can generally act alone to meet parental responsibility, without needing the agreement of the others, for most day-to-day decisions, although some major decisions, such as changing a child's surname or taking them abroad, need the consent of everyone who holds parental responsibility, or a court's permission. That includes a holiday abroad: taking a child out of the UK without that consent can be the criminal offence of child abduction, unless a child arrangements order says the child lives with you, which allows trips abroad of less than one month unless a court order says otherwise. Holding parental responsibility does not give any one person a veto over another's ordinary parenting decisions, but it does entitle them to be consulted and informed on significant matters.

Does Parental Responsibility Ever End?

Parental responsibility lasts until the child turns 18, other than in the small number of situations, such as adoption, that end it earlier for a particular parent. It is not automatically affected by divorce, separation, or a change in who a child lives with: a father, second parent, or other holder who had parental responsibility while the couple was together keeps it afterward, even where a child arrangements order gives the other parent most of the day-to-day care. A court can end parental responsibility only where it was acquired by birth registration, agreement or court order, for example by an unmarried father, a second female parent or a step-parent, and courts rarely do so. A mother's parental responsibility, and that of a father who was married to or in a civil partnership with her at the birth, cannot be removed by a court order; it ends in narrow situations such as adoption, or when the child turns 18, although a court can restrict how it is used, for example with a prohibited steps order. A parent who has lost day-to-day contact with a child, whether informally or through a court order, keeps parental responsibility unless it ends in one of these ways.

Scotland: Parental Responsibilities and Rights (PRRs)

Scotland does not use the term "parental responsibility." Instead, the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 sets out parental responsibilities and parental rights, known together as PRRs, covering broadly similar ground, such as decisions about a child's upbringing, but under separate legislation with its own rules. As in England and Wales, a mother has parental responsibilities and rights automatically. A father has them automatically if he was married to, or in a civil partnership with, the mother at the time of conception or afterward. Unmarried fathers gained a birth-certificate route later than in England and Wales: an unmarried father who jointly registers the birth with the mother has PRRs automatically only where the birth was registered in Scotland on or after 4 May 2006, rather than 1 December 2003. Fathers who do not qualify automatically can still acquire PRRs by agreement with the mother or by court order, mirroring the position south of the border.

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland has its own law, the Children (Northern Ireland) Order 1995, which follows a similar pattern. Where the parents were married to, or in a civil partnership with, each other at the birth, both have parental responsibility; otherwise the mother has it automatically. An unmarried father can acquire it by being registered as the child's father, by a parental responsibility agreement with the mother, or by court order. The registration route was added by the Family Law Act (Northern Ireland) 2001 and does not help a father who was registered before it came into force, so the England and Wales date of 1 December 2003 does not apply. As in England and Wales, a court can end parental responsibility that a father acquires in one of these ways.

Parental responsibility often comes up alongside decisions about where a child lives and who they spend time with, covered in our guide to the child arrangements order. It is separate from, but often discussed alongside, child maintenance, which does not depend on parental responsibility. Grandparents and other relatives without parental responsibility face particular hurdles, explained in grandparents' rights to see grandchildren. For the wider picture across nations, see our UK family law hub, part of our guide to United Kingdom law.

This article explains parental responsibility in general terms for England and Wales, with a brief comparison to Scotland and Northern Ireland; it is not legal advice and does not cover every family's circumstances. If you are unsure whether you have parental responsibility, or you want to acquire it, get free guidance from Citizens Advice, Gingerbread, or a family law solicitor, or consider mediation before applying to court. Family disputes over children are sensitive, and support is available regardless of which parent you are.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does parental responsibility mean?

Parental responsibility is the legal term for the rights, duties, powers and authority a parent has for a child, under section 3 of the Children Act 1989. It covers decisions such as schooling, medical treatment and consent to take a child abroad, and is separate from where a child lives day to day.

Does a mother always have parental responsibility?

Yes. The birth mother automatically has parental responsibility in England and Wales from the moment the child is born, and keeps it regardless of marriage, separation or divorce, except in narrow situations such as the child later being adopted by someone else.

When does a father automatically have parental responsibility?

A father automatically has parental responsibility if he was married to, or in a civil partnership with, the mother when the child was born, or if he is named on the birth certificate for a birth registered in England and Wales on or after 1 December 2003.

How can an unmarried father get parental responsibility if he is not on the birth certificate?

He can get a parental responsibility agreement signed with the mother and registered with the court, or apply to the court for a parental responsibility order, under section 4 of the Children Act 1989.

Can more than two people have parental responsibility for the same child?

Yes. There is no limit of two. A mother, a legal father and a step-parent who later acquired parental responsibility by agreement or court order can all hold it for the same child at the same time.

Does parental responsibility end on divorce?

No. Parental responsibility is not automatically affected by divorce or separation. It lasts until the child turns 18 unless it ends earlier, for example on adoption. A court can end parental responsibility that was acquired by birth registration, agreement or court order, which happens rarely, but it cannot end the parental responsibility of a mother, or of a father who was married to or in a civil partnership with her at the birth (including one who marries her afterwards).

Can step-parents or second female parents get parental responsibility?

Yes. A step-parent married to, or in a civil partnership with, a parent who has parental responsibility can acquire it by agreement or court order. A second female parent under the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 rules can acquire it in broadly the same ways as an unmarried father.

Is parental responsibility the same in Scotland?

No. Scotland uses parental responsibilities and rights, known as PRRs, under the Children (Scotland) Act 1995, a separate law with similar but distinct rules, including a later birth-certificate date of 4 May 2006 for unmarried fathers, rather than 1 December 2003.