This Practice Note sets out the general principles of an application for a declaration of parentage under the Family Law Act 1986. It deals with the jurisdiction of the court and the requirement for the applicant to have sufficient personal interest. It considers who the parties are, declarations of parentage in respect of adopted children and declarations of parentage for the purposes of the Child Support Act 1991 and Child Support Act 1995. It also considers declarations of legitimacy.

In Re G (children) (residence: same-sex partner) Baroness Hale summarised the three ways in which an individual can become a parent (at paras [33-35]), ie:

1. •

   genetic parenthood—the provision of the gametes which produce the child

2. •

   gestational parenthood—the conceiving and bearing of the child, and

3. •

   social and psychological parenthood—the relationship that develops through the child demanding and the parent providing for the child's needs

The court cannot make a declaration of psychological parentage as declarations are intended to be matters of fact. See Practice Note: Acquisition of parental responsibility by female parents.

In A Local Authority