Parental responsibility in kinship care

What is parental responsibility

Parental responsibility is the rights, duties, powers, responsibilities and authority which a parent has in relation to a child and his or her property.

Other adults can gain it for a child if a court decides it’s in the child’s best interests.

Any person with parental responsibility has a duty to the child in their care to:

• provide a home for them
• protect them
• ensure their wellbeing
• ensure their welfare
• discipline them
• choose and provide for their education
• agree to their medical treatment
• look after their property

You might see parental responsibility referred to as PR.

Who has parental responsibility

A mother has parental responsibility for their child from birth. A father has it if:

• they are married to or in a civil partnership with the child’s mother when the child is born
• they are listed on the child’s birth certificate

If you don’t automatically have parental responsibility, you can apply to the court to get it.

Parental responsibility in kinship care arrangements

As a kinship carer, the type of arrangement under which the child is living with you determines who has parental responsibility (PR).

Informal kinship care – parents keep PR

Kinship foster care – parents and the local authority share PR

Private foster care – parents keep PR

Child arrangements order (CAO) – parents and the CAO holder share PR

Special guardianship order (SGO) – parents and the special guardian share PR (in reality, the special guardian can make almost all decisions)

Why you might consider applying for parental responsibility

If you are caring for a child and don’t have parental responsibility, it can make everyday decisions for the child difficult – depending on your relationship with the parents. You may struggle to come to agreements with the parents, or need regular contact to get their consent, such as for school trips or medical treatment.

When you have a special guardianship order or child arrangements order in place, it means that you share parental responsibility with the parents. In rare circumstances you could also share it with the local authority.

Special guardianship orders and child arrangement orders leave existing family relationships intact. The birth mother and father are still legally the parents.

Decisions that need parental responsibility include:

• deciding where a child lives
• giving consent for medical treatments
• choosing a school or nursery for a child
• getting a child’s hair cut

Applying for parental responsibility

If you are a grandparent, close relative or friend who has stepped up to raise a child who is not your own, there are 2 types of legal order that you can apply for that will give you parental responsibility (PR). You need to apply to the court for either of these orders:

• special guardianship order
• child arrangements order

Special guardians

Special guardians can make all day-to-day decisions concerning the child without having to discuss these decisions with the birth parents.

Although a special guardian has enhanced parental responsibility, they will still need the consent of other people with it (such as the child’s mother or father) in some situations. Some situations include:

• changing the child’s surname
• taking the child out of the country for more than three months
• giving consent for adoption
• surgery that doesn’t improve the child’s health, such as circumcision

You might also see this referred to as overriding parental responsibility, or you may hear people mention that a special guardian has a 51% majority.

Read our advice guide on special guardianship orders to find out more about what it means, if you are eligible and how to apply.

Child arrangements order

Under a child arrangements order, you share PR with the child’s parents until the child is 18 years old (unless the family court states otherwise). You will make most day-to-day decisions for the child, such as going on school trips, but you will need to get consent from the child’s parents to make major decisions about their care.

You may hear people mention carers who have a child arrangements order having 50% PR.

Read our advice guide on child arrangements orders to find out more about what it means, if you are eligible and how to apply.

Before applying for a legal order, we recommend getting legal advice.

Support from Kinship

Here at Kinship, we offer a range of free support for all kinship carers, including  workshops, online advice and information, and support groups.

To find services, information and support in your local area, including information about your local children’s services, use our Kinship Compass tool.

You can also contact the Kinship advice team for free, non-judgmental advice and information if you live in England or Wales.