Changing my childs name by deed poll???

teabag29

As im applying for my childrens passports ive bitten the bullet and firstly applied to have my elder 2 childrens surname changed by deed poll. I had previously wanted to do this at the childrens request some years ago now but their father wouldnt agree to it.

Having looked into it more it seems I may stand a good chance of doing it without his permission or a court order so ive applied just incase. Basically he was a violent alcoholic who shook our son, hit our daughter and abused me, consequently hes now a convicted schedule 1 offender and hasnt seen the children since 2001. I was married to him after the birth of our eldest child so he does have PR. I have a residence order.

The children are now 13 and almost 15 and according to what ive read their wishes should now be taken into account plus the fact that my ex was violent and has not seen them for over 10 years i'm hoping will mean that I dont have to apply for a court order to change their surname. My son hates having to share his name after what he did to him plus he sees my husband as his dad whos been with us almost 9 years and he wants to share the family name.

Has anyone been in this position and been allowed to change their childs name without the need for a court order. I think the court would go in my favour but im hoping to avoid that due to court costs and also holding up my passport applications (haven't sent them off yet waiting to see if deed poll grants the name changes first).

Shovel_Lad

You might find this useful to read (this applies to England.)

http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/england/family_parent/family/change_of_name.htm

Scotland:
http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/scotland/relationships_s/relationships_birth_certificates_and_changing_your_name_s/changing_your_name_scotland.htm

Wales and Northern Ireland can be found on the same website if that's where you live.

~Chameleon~

You can change their names whenever you like without the need for a court order or deed poll. Just inform schools, doctors etc of their new name. The only problem comes when applying for a passport. Until they are 18yrs old and can change their own name by deed poll you will have to use the name on their birth certificate. Unless of course the father would agree to the change of name but I guess this isn't an option for you.

teabag29

Yes ive read all the rules around it and it seems id almost deffo be able to change the names if applying to court and may or may not be able to by going straight for the deed poll without a court order, it depends if they feel my situation fits their requirements

teabag29

~Chameleon~ wrote: »

You can change their names whenever you like without the need for a court order or deed poll. Just inform schools, doctors etc of their new name. The only problem comes when applying for a passport. Until they are 18yrs old and can change their own name by deed poll you will have to use the name on their birth certificate. Unless of course the father would agree to the change of name but I guess this isn't an option for you.

But if I can change their name by deed poll myself and its allowed the passport office will allow their new surname on the passports won't they?

~Chameleon~

teabag29 wrote: »

But if I can change their name by deed poll myself and its allowed the passport office will allow their new surname on the passports won't they?

No, not without the written consent of both parents.

teabag29

But the rules suggest my circumstances will allow me to get their names changed without a court order.

Changing a child's name without the consent of an absent father whose whereabouts is known
To change your child's name by Deed Poll where the whereabouts of an absent parent (with parental responsibility) is known, we will need either the absent parent's consent or a court order, which gives the court's permission to change your child's name without the absent father's consent. The only exception to this is where a mother wishes to change her child's name from the father's name where there is reported violence against the mother or abuse of the children by the father or where the father is in prison for a serious offence. Examples of situations where we will accept a Deed Poll application from a mother in such circumstances are:

• The mother has fled the family home to escape violence or abuse from the father and is at risk or fearful of being located.
• The mother is fearful of contacting the father because of past abuse (physical or mental) towards her or her children.
• The father is in prison for a serious offence such as murder, rape or other sexual offence and the mother and children do not wish to be associated by name to the father.
• Where there is a court order in force for no contact.

When you apply to us for your Deed Poll, in the section of the application form where you declare parental responsibility, you will need to select the option Joint parental responsibility (father is absent). You will then need to send us a letter of consent using Example letter 4b (opens new window) as a template. Your letter will need to be modified to explain your situation and why you do not wish to contact the father for his consent. You should include details of any police crime reference numbers and/or details of the conviction and prison sentence (if applicable). We will return your letter when we post your Deed Poll documentation to you so it may be used, along with your Deed Poll, when applying to change your child's documents and records to your child's new name.

My situation fits that criteria so surely I should be able to get their names changed and if so then how will the passport office even know that their father didnt give his consent as i'll have the deed poll as proof of name change

Aimless

Can't help with the deed poll stuff, but I changed my son's name by statutory declaration. When applying for a passport I sent a copy of the declaration and his birth certificate, and the passport is in his new name. I've never had any problems with anything, banks, schools etc, everyone has accepted birth cert plus declaration.

~Chameleon~

teabag29 wrote: »

My situation fits that criteria so surely I should be able to get their names changed and if so then how will the passport office even know that their father didnt give his consent as i'll have the deed poll as proof of name change

Well then I'm unsure as to why you're asking the question if you already know the answer!

My children had to wait until they were 18 to change their name on passports but then there was no violence involved in my relationship. I simply changed their names to that of my new husband when I re-married. Didn't even need to do a deed poll or stat declaration. Simply informed schools, doctors etc of their new name. No problem applying for bank accounts or driving licence either.

If the passport office will accept a deed poll from you in view of your circumstances then you have no problem.

Brewstersmum

hi I changed my sons name by deed poll and had to write a short explanation of why I was doing this without his fathers permission (he too was violent and had PR). I used this clause :-

The mother is fearful of contacting the father because of past abuse (physical or mental) towards her or her children.

I haven't applied for my sons passport but he is nearly old enough to it himself. just go for it OP, at the worst you may have to just have their passports in the other name but for everyday living they get their chosen name.

CATS

Hi OP,

My ex had no parental responsibility of my son either. I applied by deed poll to change my son's surname without a court order and it was all done ok. I then used the deed poll certificate to get his new passport. This was 4 years ago when he was 10, I had no problems at all