advice needed

Post Reply
buster53
Posts: 3
Joined: Tue Sep 04, 2012 7:13 pm

advice needed

Post by buster53 » Wed Sep 05, 2012 5:52 pm

my ex partner and i have a little boy who has been adopted in 2009 it went through the courts and he is in something called i think special guardianship we were told that he would be in this until the couple who have him for three years then they can adopt him properly i would like to know if this is true? and when these three years are up do i as his natural father have to sign anything he was taken from the minute he was born due to my partner not wantng him and i knew i couldnt bring him up alone as i was holding down 2 jobs since this my ex has had another with someone else so you can understand how i feel can someone give me any advice thank you

User avatar
Suzie, FRG Adviser
Posts: 4207
Joined: Mon Jul 04, 2011 2:57 pm

Re: advice needed

Post by Suzie, FRG Adviser » Thu Sep 06, 2012 11:26 am

Hello Buster

Welcome to the discussion boards. My name is Suzie and I am an FRG adviser.

You say that your son is living with a couple under a special guardianship order (SGO). An SGO is usually made with the intention of it remaining in place and the child remaining in that placement until they are 18.

The SGO gives the couple caring for your son, parental responsibility (PR) for him. His mother also retains PR for him, which means that, legally, she is still his mother, even though she may not play a significant role in his life.

Do you also have PR for your son Buster? You would have this if you were married to his mother, if you were named on his birth certificate or if a court granted it to you.

If you do have PR for your son, you are entitled to have some involvement in his life and could apply to the court to have contact with him if this is not already happening. As a father with PR, you would also be automatically informed if there was an application for your son to be adopted and your views about this would be sought. If you do not have PR, therefore, it is important to discuss this with a solicitor as soon as possible to ensure that you are involved in any adoption procedures.

A child does not have to live with a family for 3years before they are adopted if they have been placed by an adoption agency- this usually means placed by Children’s Services.

From what you have said, it does not sound as though your son was placed with the couple he lives with by an adoption agency/ Children’s Services. Perhaps this arrangement was made between them and your ex partner? In this situation, it is right that, once a child has been living with the couple for 3 years, they are able to apply for an adoption order. If an adoption order is granted, the couple will become your son’s legal parents instead of you and your ex partner.

The court can only grant an adoption order if all parents with PR agree to this or if the court decides it is appropriate to remove the right of a parent to object to the adoption.

If you do not want your son to be adopted, it is important that you speak to a solicitor about this urgently so that you can be properly represented in the adoption process.

I hope that this answers some of your questions Buster. I would advise you to read our advice sheet about adoption and please do come back to us or call our advice line (0808 8010366) if you have any further questions.

Best Wishes

Suzie
FRG Adviser

buster53
Posts: 3
Joined: Tue Sep 04, 2012 7:13 pm

Re: advice needed

Post by buster53 » Thu Sep 06, 2012 6:14 pm

hi thank you very much for your advice i was married to his mum and my name is also on the birth certificate but i dont remember being given a pr can his birth mother sign the adoption papers without me? thank you.

User avatar
Suzie, FRG Adviser
Posts: 4207
Joined: Mon Jul 04, 2011 2:57 pm

Re: advice needed

Post by Suzie, FRG Adviser » Wed Sep 12, 2012 10:23 am

Hello again Buster

As you and mum were married, you automatically have PR (parental responsibility) for your son. Your rights and responsibilities regarding your son are equal to mum's. This means that you should be formally involved in your son's adoption hearing and will receive copies of all the court papers.

Your son's mum cannot agree to the adoption on your behalf- you must be consulted in your own right. As I said, however, if you do not consent to the adoption, the court could decide to dispense with your agreement and grant the adoption order anyway. The court will only do this if it is decided that this is in your son's best interests (i.e. that the adoption is what is best for him)

If possible, I would certainly advise you to speak to a solicitor about being represented through the proceedings.

I hope this helps.

Best Wishes

Suzie
FRG Adviser

buster53
Posts: 3
Joined: Tue Sep 04, 2012 7:13 pm

Re: advice needed

Post by buster53 » Wed Sep 12, 2012 7:45 pm

thank you very much

Post Reply

Who is online

In total there are 5 users online :: 0 registered, 0 hidden and 5 guests (based on users active over the past 5 minutes)
Most users ever online was 318 on Fri May 28, 2021 9:04 pm