Need urgent advise

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gooddad

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I really need some help and advise, I am a father who works full time and provides for my child. I own my home and my son has lived with me and his mother since he was born.

His mother now my ex-partner and I are not married and she left the family home, without taking my son.

I was invited to her parents house to discuss the situation, and basically was stitched up as she called the police and had me arrested for an assault which didn't take place.

I am not guilty of this crime and am currently having to go through court, and now to trial to clear my name of this crime.

The police arrived at my home and arrested me and explained that they needed to take my child out of the family home to release him into someone with parental responsibility (his mother)

Since that time I have had to have my parents collect him at weekends, as this is all she would agree to. This has been going on for several weeks now. my son (2 years old) has been living on the floors of her family members homes.

I have my son now and due to extensive reasons, drug taking, wilful neglect, and the fact that she has no means to provide for him, and now the threat that she will not allow me to see my son at all. I am reluctant to take him back.

There is no formal or legal agreement in place and I want to know if she has any powers (through the police or any other means) to make me return him to this horrific poor and unsafe environment.

When I refer to wilful neglect, the mother was untidy to say the least and I have awoken to find my son eating ibruprofen tablets, as rather than get him up and dressed she dumped him in our bed without checking that it was safe.

On another occasion I returned from work in the evening to be told that he had not walked all day. He had twisted his leg in his sleep. She neglected to take him to the doctors (bottom of our street) or the hospital (10min walk) I immediately took him to the hospital and he was put in a plaster cast for three weeks.

On a number of occasions I have found him with a bottle of bleach in his mouth. His mother cleaned the bathroom and left him unattended only for me to discover him in the nick of time.

I will seek legal advise on Monday morning but she is suggesting now that we took him without her permission even though we have text messages agreeing to let my parents go and collect him.

I don't want to let him go back to that, for safety reasons and any advise would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks in advance

A
 
gooddad said:
I really need some help and advise, I am a father who works full time and provides for my child. I own my home and my son has lived with me and his mother since he was born.

His mother now my ex-partner and I are not married and she left the family home, without taking my son.

I was invited to her parents house to discuss the situation, and basically was stitched up as she called the police and had me arrested for an assault which didn't take place.

I am not guilty of this crime and am currently having to go through court, and now to trial to clear my name of this crime.

The police arrived at my home and arrested me and explained that they needed to take my child out of the family home to release him into someone with parental responsibility (his mother)

Since that time I have had to have my parents collect him at weekends, as this is all she would agree to. This has been going on for several weeks now. my son (2 years old) has been living on the floors of her family members homes.

I have my son now and due to extensive reasons, drug taking, wilful neglect, and the fact that she has no means to provide for him, and now the threat that she will not allow me to see my son at all. I am reluctant to take him back.

There is no formal or legal agreement in place and I want to know if she has any powers (through the police or any other means) to make me return him to this horrific poor and unsafe environment.

When I refer to wilful neglect, the mother was untidy to say the least and I have awoken to find my son eating ibruprofen tablets, as rather than get him up and dressed she dumped him in our bed without checking that it was safe.

On another occasion I returned from work in the evening to be told that he had not walked all day. He had twisted his leg in his sleep. She neglected to take him to the doctors (bottom of our street) or the hospital (10min walk) I immediately took him to the hospital and he was put in a plaster cast for three weeks.

On a number of occasions I have found him with a bottle of bleach in his mouth. His mother cleaned the bathroom and left him unattended only for me to discover him in the nick of time.

I will seek legal advise on Monday morning but she is suggesting now that we took him without her permission even though we have text messages agreeing to let my parents go and collect him.

I don't want to let him go back to that, for safety reasons and any advise would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks in advance

A
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Before anyone can provide you wit a proper answer, we need some clarification.

Have you formally and legally established your paternity?








If so, how?

If not, you will first need to establish paternity of this child.

It appears you are in the UK.

This is a US based legal forum.

Your best bet is to consult a solicitor.

You should do that ASAP.

You could end up being charged with some form of parental alienation, or even kidnapping.

Consult a solicitor, ASAP.

You need to learn what rights you have as an unmarried father.

I suspect your rights are very limited, without court intervention.

This link might help you:

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Parents/ParentsRights/DG_4002954

I draw your attention to the following:


Unlike mothers, fathers do not always have 'parental responsibility' for their children. With more than one in three children now born outside marriage, some parents may be unclear about who has legal parental responsibility for their children.

Applying to the courts for parental responsibility

A father can apply to the court to gain parental responsibility. In considering an application from a father, the court will take the following into account:

the degree of commitment shown by the father to his child
the degree of attachment between father and child
the father's reasons for applying for the order

The court will then decide to accept or reject the application based on what it believes is in the child's best interest.

Find local courts in England and Wales> http://hmctscourtfinder.direct.gov.uk/HMCTS/

Find a local court in Scotland> http://www.scotcourts.gov.uk/locations/index.asp

Find a local court in Northern Ireland> https://onlineservices.courtsni.gov.uk/publiccourtlists/


http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Parents/ParentsRights/DG_4002954

 
Gooddad, you're really not going to get better advice online than what AJ has provided here.

You really need to take what he posted, and contact a local solicitor asap.


:)
 
Yeah I have parental responsibility. I am on the birth certificate and there is no doubt surrounding his parentage. I will be speaking to a solicitor on Monday but I am unsure as to what my rights are.

As no formal legal, or written agreement exists, can I be breaking the law by keeping my son safe and at home?
 
Please re-read AJ's post.

The answer is "possibly".

That's as far as we can go here.
 
I have been to see a solicitor this morning on a free advice basis. I understand now that I will have to gain parental responsibility, as I'm on the birth certificate I can do it without her consent and then apply for residency. However I have been advised that I should return him to his mother as agreed as at present I don't have any rights.

I appreciate your advice and indeed that this is a US forum but I have struggled to find any UK based advice service online. And with the escalating gravity of the situation I needed some immediate advice.

The solicitor advised me that regardless of the outcome of this common assault allegation it shouldn't affect the situation around custody of my child.

Once again thankyou for the advice offered and any further advice that you may be able to provide

A
 
gooddad said:
I have been to see a solicitor this morning on a free advice basis. I understand now that I will have to gain parental responsibility, as I'm on the birth certificate I can do it without her consent and then apply for residency. However I have been advised that I should return him to his mother as agreed as at present I don't have any rights.

I appreciate your advice and indeed that this is a US forum but I have struggled to find any UK based advice service online. And with the escalating gravity of the situation I needed some immediate advice.

The solicitor advised me that regardless of the outcome of this common assault allegation it shouldn't affect the situation around custody of my
child.

Once again thankyou for the advice offered and any further advice that you may be able to provide


A
Click to expand...


You now know all you need to know.

To paraphrase the Bard, "Get thee to a Court of Chancery!"
 
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