Legal background Restricting parental responsibility when one parent kills the other
The Children Act 1989 (‘the Act’) defines parental responsibility as all the rights, duties, powers, responsibilities and authority that a parent of a child has in relation to the child and their property by law (section 3 of the Act). A child’s mother will always have parental responsibility for her child (section 2 of the Act). If the parents are not married or in a civil partnership with each other when the child is born, only the mother automatically has parental responsibility. The unmarried father can acquire parental responsibility in a number of ways set out in primary legislation.
	More than one person can have parental responsibility for a child at the same time, and a person with parental responsibility does not lose it solely because another person acquires parental responsibility (sections 19 and 52 of Adoption and Children Act 2002). If more than one person has parental responsibility, each can act independently unless there is a statutory requirement to consult the others (section 2(7) of the Act).
	In cases of disagreement between those with parental responsibility an individual can apply to the court for an order under section 8 of the Act. Section 8 makes provision for a prohibited steps order (PSO). A PSO is an order that means that no step which could be taken by a parent in meeting their parental responsibility, and which is of a kind specified in the order, shall be taken by any person without the consent of the court.
	Section 9 of the Act provides detail on the restrictions that apply when a PSO is made. Section 10 of the Act outlines the power of the court to make a PSO.