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Read more articles in: Blog, Elaine Collins, Family, Family Law
13 July 2026
In the UK, over 51 per cent of children are born to unmarried parents, with a significant majority being born to cohabiting couples.
Marriage offers a sense of stability for fathers, as it gives them parental responsibility for the child and a clearer legal role in important decisions about their upbringing.
However, for unmarried fathers, parental responsibility is not automatic.
Parental responsibility is a legal term that gives parents authority to make decisions for their children.
It encompasses their rights, duties, and authority as a parent. The decisions they can make for their children include, but are not limited to:
In England and Wales, parental responsibility automatically goes to the mother of the child, rights for fathers are not automatic.
There are certain conditions that should be met for fathers to have parental responsibilities, the first of which is that the parents got married before the birth of the child.
Parental responsibility is also granted automatically if the father’s name is on the child’s birth certificate, for births registered after 1 December 2003.
There are ways for fathers to gain parental responsibility.
If you do not have automatic parental responsibility, there are ways to obtain parental responsibility of the child.
An option can be a Parental Responsibility Agreement. This is a formal agreement between the father and the mother of the child and needs to be witnessed by a Court official.
It allows the parent who does not have parental responsibility to gain responsibility of the child without a court order.
If the Mother is not agreeable to a Parental Responsibility Agreement, an application to the Family Court can be made for a Parental Responsibility Order.
Unlike a Parental Responsibility Agreement, which is a voluntary agreement, a Parental Responsibility Order requires a legal decision if the parents cannot come to a voluntary agreement.
In the circumstances in which the child has a ‘lives with’ order with the father, the father does automatically have parental responsibility. For the duration of that Order.
It is important to understand that financial responsibility is separate from parental responsibility.
Even if a father does not have parental responsibility, they are still legally obligated to contribute financially towards the child’s upbringing.
The Child Maintenance Service deals with child maintenance to ensure that the child is provided for financially throughout their life.
Every family’s situation is different, for unmarried fathers, your path to parental rights may be different to married fathers.
If you are an unmarried father and want to obtain parental rights to your child, our talented team of family solicitors are here to help you.
We can help you come to agreements on child arrangements amicably and swiftly.
For support with parental responsibility, get in touch today.
