Parental Responsibility - Q&A

My son was born in 2001. I'm not married to my partner but I'm on the birth certificate as his dad. What should I do about parental responsibility?
You don't automatically have parental responsibility because it wasn't until 1st December 2003 that unmarried dads got it by registering their name on the birth certificates.

You can get Parental Responsibility by:

making a Parental Responsibility Agreement with your son's mother (You can't re-register the birth because you're already on the birth certificate)
if your son's mother doesn't agree, by applying to the court for a Parental Responsibility Order
by marrying your son's mother

My daughter was born in November 1999. On her birth certificate it says "father unknown". Her mother and I have agreed that I should have Parental Responsibility too. How do we do it?
Because you aren't named on the birth certificate you have a choice. You can either re-register the birth or make a parental responsibility agreement.

Both methods are very simple (you just have to fill in a form and go together either to the register office or to your nearest family court or county court) and it doesn't cost anything either way. However, if you want your name to appear on your daughter's birth certificate you will have to re-register the birth anyway so this method would probably be the best for you. If you follow the links below you can download the necessary form.

My partner's having a baby next month. She wants to give the baby her surname rather than mine. Will that mean I don't have Parental Responsibility?
Your partner can choose any surname for the baby. That doesn’t affect Parental Responsibility. If you are registered as the baby’s father on the birth certificate this will give you Parental Responsibility.

Eight years ago I had a daughter. I didn't put her father on the birth certificate. Recently her dad and I got married but we haven't added his details to the birth certificate. Does he have Parental Responsibility?
Yes he does. The subsequent marriage of two parents gives the father Parental Responsibility (provided that he is the father), even if his details are not on the birth certificate.

My partner and I have been together for over ten years. We have two daughters together, and she also has a 13 year old son, Liam, from a previous relationship. I have always thought of Liam as my son and he has never had any contact with his real father. My partner and I are now going to tie the knot next month. Will this mean I automatically get Parental Responsibility or do I need to do sign a form or something?
Getting married will mean you automatically get Parental Responsibility for your daughters. You won't automatically get Parental Responsibility for Liam because he's not your natural child. You can get it though. You and your partner could ask the court to grant you a Residence order which would also give you Parental Responsibility for as long as the order lasts or until he reaches 18. Another option might be to adopt Liam - this would make him legally your son in all respects. You should get advice about this.

I am not on good- terms with my ex but I play an active role in my son's life. I think I should have an equal say in how he is brought up on a day to day basis but his mother dismisses my suggestions as "interfering". If I had Parental Responsibility would it give me the right to have a say in his bedtime, how much TV he watches, and how much he uses his dummy?
Parental Responsibility doesn't give you a right to more say in day to day decisions and it would be a mistake to think of it in that way.

Parental Responsibility gives you the right to have a say in certain important decisions. These include things like his name, what school he should go to, what religion he should brought up in and where he should live. It also allows you to have a say in whether he should be put up for adoption, or allowed to marry before he reaches 18, and means you can consent to medical treatment for him.

I'm the father of two teenage sons. I have only recently realised that I don't have Parental Responsibility, but it's never been a problem so far. Does it really matter?
Whether you have Parental Responsibility or not has very little impact most of the time, as the child's mother is likely to include you in these decisions anyway. She (and anyone else with Parental Responsibility) is also entitled to delegate it to whoever is looking after the child, and, in an emergency you could consent to medical treatment for the child even if you don't have PR. There are two main reasons why people bother with it:

Firstly, it confirms, legally, that you are equal parents. Confirming your role as father can help everyone to feel more secure.
Secondly, if the child’s mother were to die and you didn't already have PR, you would need to apply to a court for an order. This would be stressful and time consuming at a very difficult time.

I don't have Parental Responsibility for my daughter so how come I have to pay Child Support for her?
Parental Responsibility and Child Support are unrelated issues, set out in separate laws. All parents (either by birth or by adoption) have a duty to financially support their children if they have the means, whether or not they have Parental Responsibility.

My ex is having a baby. She says that she is not going to put me on the birth certificate because I am not the father, but I know I am. Is there anything I can do to force her to acknowledge me as the father?
It's the mother's choice whether or not the father's details appear on the birth certificate and you can't force her to add them. However, if you are unable to come to an agreement with the mother you could ask the court for a Parental Responsibility Order which would give you the right to take part in certain important decisions in the child's life. You would have to be able to prove that you are the father by a DNA test.

If you got a Parental Responsibility order it would not mean you had rights to see the baby. If the baby does turn out to be yours and you wanted to see him or her, you would have to ask the court for a contact order separately.

If you prove you are the father, whether or not you are granted a Parental Responsibility Order or a Contact Order, you would then have the legal obligation to support the child financially and could be pursued for child support.

If you are in this situation you should get legal advice from a solicitor.

Disclaimer
This is a general introduction to these issues. The law is complicated – if you are having difficulty with parental responsibility you should get advice.