Children and Family Relationships Act 2015

PART 4

Amendments to Guardianship of Infants Act 1964

Amendment of section 2 of Act of 1964

43. Section 2 of the Act of 1964 is amended—

(a) in subsection (1) by—

(i) the substitution of the following definition for the definition of “adoption order”:

“ ‘adoption order’ has the same meaning as it has in the Adoption Act 2010 ;”,

(ii) the substitution of the following definition for the definition of “father”:

“ ‘father’ includes a male adopter under an adoption order but subject to section 11(4), does not include the father of a child who has not married that child’s mother unless—

(a) an order under section 6A is in force in respect of that child,

(b) the circumstances set out in subsection (3) of this section apply,

(c) the circumstances set out in subsection (4) of this section apply,

(d) the circumstances set out in subsection (4A) of this section apply, or

(e) the father is a guardian of the child by virtue of section 6D;”,

(iii) the substitution of the following definition for the definition of “parent”:

“ ‘parent’ means—

(a) subject to paragraph (b), a father or mother as defined by this subsection, and

(b) in relation to a donor-conceived child, the parent or parents of that child under section 5 of the Act of 2015;”,

and

(iv) the insertion of the following definitions:

“ ‘Act of 2010’ means the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010 ;

‘Act of 2015’ means the Children and Family Relationships Act 2015;

‘civil partner’ shall be construed in accordance with section 3 of the Act of 2010;

‘cohabitant’ shall be construed in accordance with section 172(1) of the Act of 2010;

‘donor-conceived child’ has the meaning it has in Part 2 of the Act of 2015;

‘enactment’ means a statute or an instrument made under a power conferred by statute;

‘enforcement order’ shall be construed in accordance with section 18A(1);

‘qualifying guardian’, in relation to a child, means a person who is a guardian of that child and who—

(a) is the parent of the child and has custody of him or her, or

(b) not being a parent of the child has custody of him or her to the exclusion of any living parent of the child;

‘Minister’ means the Minister for Justice and Equality;

‘relative’, in relation to a child, means a grandparent, brother, sister, uncle or aunt of the child;”,

(b) in subsection (4) —

(i) in paragraph (c), by the deletion of “child,” and substitution of “child, and”, and

(ii) by the deletion of paragraph (d),

and

(c) by the insertion after subsection (4) of the following:

“(4A) The circumstances referred to in paragraph (d) of the definition of ‘father’ in subsection (1) are that the father and mother of the child concerned—

(a) have not married each other, and

(b) have been cohabitants for not less than 12 consecutive months occurring after the date on which this subsection comes into operation, which shall include a period, occurring at any time after the birth of the child, of not less than three consecutive months during which both the mother and father have lived with the child.”.