England and Wales Case Law

Children: Parental Responsibility

M2 never had parental responsibility for RF and AF as she did not qualify under s42 HFEA due to natural conception; PR acquired by mistake is void ab initio. M2 is not granted PR for any child due to inability to accept court findings and risk of emotional harm to the children. F is granted PR for RF and AF due to demonstrated commitment and relationship. M2's contact with RF and AF must be supervised due to risk of emotional harm. FA lives with M1 and has no contact with M2. Applications for name change, baptism, foreign passports, and unrestricted travel are refused. The application to set…

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• Parental responsibility
• Child arrangements orders
• Declarations of parentage
• Prohibited steps orders
• Specific issue orders
• Change of name

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Essex County Council v F1 & Ors

The threshold for a care order was met due to F1's emotional harm to the children, involvement in sexual activity with adolescents, refusal to foster A's relationship with his biological father, and refusal to accept help. A's age and strong wish to return home justified discharge of the interim care order and return to F1 under a supervision order, while B's needs and emotional welfare required a care order and continued foster placement.

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• Care orders
• Parental responsibility
• Child welfare
• Change of name
• Contact arrangements
• Threshold criteria

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Essex County Council v F1 & Ors

Essex County Council v F1 & Ors [2025] EWFC 424 (12 December 2025)

Family Court decision on care proceedings involving two children, a stepfather, and issues of emotional harm, parental responsibility, surname change, and contact.

• Care orders
• Parental responsibility
• Child protection
• Change of name
• Contact arrangements
• Care-orders

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SI (formerly EC) v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions

The Upper Tribunal dismissed an appeal concerning a repeated challenge to an earlier First-tier Tribunal decision, holding there was no jurisdictional or procedural error.

• Appeal procedure
• Jurisdiction
• Strike out
• Procedural irregularity
• Change of name
• Social-security-law

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A (A Child) (Mother killed by Father), Re

A (A Child) (Mother killed by Father), Re [2025] EWFC 374 (03 November 2025)

The court granted the maternal grandmother special guardianship, revoked the father’s parental responsibility, changed the child’s surname, and imposed protective section 91(14) orders.

• Special guardianship
• Parental responsibility
• Change of name
• Child arrangements
• Section 91(14) orders
• Transparency orders

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M1 v M2 & Ors

M1 v M2 & Ors [2025] EWFC 461 (B) (29 August 2025)

The court refused M2’s bid to reopen parentage findings, removed her parental responsibility for RF and AF, granted F PR, and ordered supervised contact for M2.

• Parental responsibility
• Declarations of parentage
• Child arrangements orders
• Prohibited steps orders
• Change of name
• Contact arrangements

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Q v Y (Fact Finding Hearing)

The mother failed to prove the allegation of inappropriate behaviour on 13 October 2023, which was found to be false. The father was found to have communicated in a demeaning and disrespectful manner and engaged in financially controlling behaviour on at least one occasion, but his conduct did not amount to coercive or controlling behaviour as defined by law. The mother’s unilateral decisions regarding relocation and nursery enrollment were inappropriate given the father’s equal parental responsibility. The welfare of P required permitting the mother to relocate and enrol P in a nursery in th…

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• Domestic abuse
• Child welfare
• Relocation
• Parental responsibility
• Nursery enrollment
• Change of name

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F v M

F v M [2025] EWFC 252 (B) (30 July 2025)

In contested Children Act proceedings, the court made a joint lives-with order for Ajay, refused surname changes, dismissed F’s school appeal application, and made a s91(14) order.

• Child arrangements
• Section 8 orders
• Section 91(14) orders
• Domestic abuse allegations
• Change of name
• Contact and residence

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C (A Child) (Change of Given Name)

The trial judge erred by focusing on gender identity and the risk of endorsing a non-binary status, rather than conducting a holistic welfare analysis and giving due weight to C’s wishes, emotional needs, and Article 8 rights. The welfare checklist and the Guardian’s evidence supported granting the order. The appeal was allowed and an order made permitting the legal change of C’s given name.

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• Change of name
• Welfare principle
• Gender identity
• Article 8 echr
• Children act 1989
• Parental responsibility

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A (A Child) (Mother killed by Father), Re

The welfare of A is best served by granting special guardianship to Ms Westcarr, revoking Mr Tape's parental responsibility, changing A's surname to remove Tape and include Kennedi, restricting paternal grandparents to indirect contact, and imposing section 91(14) orders to protect A and Ms Westcarr from unfiltered future applications. Transparency order is justified given public interest and existing reporting.

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• Special guardianship
• Parental responsibility
• Change of name
• Child arrangements
• Section 91(14) orders
• Transparency orders

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