Births
Parental responsibility
The mother of a child - and the father if he is married to the mother - automatically have parental responsibility. Where the parents are not married to each other, the father will acquire parental responsibility if he acts with the mother to have his name recorded in the child's birth registration from 1st December 2003.
An unmarried father can also obtain parental responsibility by later marrying the child's mother, by making a parental responsibility agreement with her, or by getting a court order. You may wish to consider this if you have other children.
If you need further information or advice, you should call Parentline Plus on 0808 800 2222 or textphone them on 0800 783 6783, or get legal advice.
