Yes. If everyone who has parental responsibility for the child agrees, you can enter into a parental responsibility agreement. The child’s mother will have parental responsibility and the father will have parental responsibility if he was married to the child’s mother or if the child was born after 1 December 2003 and the father is named on the birth certificate.

A stepparent acquiring parental responsibility for a child does not remove parental responsibility from the other parents and do not remove the child from membership of the other family for example for inheritance purposes. 

If you do not have the consent of everyone with parental responsibility you can ask the court for a parental responsibility order which will be granted if it is the child’s best interests to do so.  

As a stepparent you can also apply for a child arrangements order for your stepson or stepdaughter to live with or otherwise spend time with you.

If you are not married to or in a civil partnership with the child’s mother, you can still acquire parental responsibility but you will need to apply for a child arrangements order. If you and the child’s mother and father agree, this can be done by consent. 

For further information or for a free initial telephone consultation please contact Rachel Baker in our Cradley Heath office on 01384 384580 or by email to rbaker@georgegreen.co.uk or Alex Mansfield in our Wolverhampton office on 01902 328365 or by email to AMansfield@georgegreen.co.uk