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About
Deed Polls
What is a Deed
Poll?
Why
is it called a Deed Poll?
What
is the purpose of a Deed Poll?
Who can apply?
Can I change my children's names?
Are there any restrictions on names?
Is
a Deed Poll registered anywhere?
Can
a birth certificate be changed?
Why
do people change their name?
Answers to other
FAQs
Applying
for a Deed Poll
Change
your name online now
Example letters
of consent
General
name change information
Introduction
A
woman's rights upon marriage
A
man's rights upon marriage
A
woman's rights upon divorce
A
woman's rights upon being widowed
Your
rights upon adoption
Who to advise
after changing your name
UK
Deed Poll Service
Contact us
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions
and your rights
Applying
for a Deed Poll
Example
letters of consent
If you are changing a child's name (child means a person under 18 years of age) that you have parental responsibility for, you must send us the appropriate letter of consent after submitting your online application. If your child is 16 or 17 years of age, they must also consent in writing to their name being changed.
You are strongly advised to read our article about changing children's names, which explains the meaning of parental responsibility and allows you to establish whether you have sole or joint parental responsibility for your child. Click here to read the article.
Example letters of consent when changing a child's name:
| Letter 1 Joint parental responsibility |
Required if you have joint parental responsibility. Usually this is where the mother and father were married at birth or have married since birth. |
| Letter 2 Sole parental responsibility |
Required if you have sole parental responsibility. Usually this is where the mother was not married at birth and has not married the father since birth. |
| Letter 3 | Required in addition to Letter 1, 2 or 4 where the child is 16 or 17 years of age. |
| Letter 4 Absent father |
Required if you have joint parental responsibility but the father's whereabouts is unknown. |
If the above letters of consent do not suit your circumstances, please call our freephone helpline on 0800-7833048 between 10am-1pm & 2pm-6pm, Monday to Friday (except public holidays).
After submitting your Deed Poll application, post your letter(s) of consent to us without delay as we cannot send you your Deed Poll until we have receive it (e-mailed, faxed or photocopied letters of consent are not acceptable). Our address can be found on our contact us page.
Joint parental responsibility
To be signed by both parents (i.e. those persons having parental responsibility for the child). If your child is 16 or 17 years of age, you also need to send us a further letter of consent to be signed by the child (see letter 3 below).
Letter 1 template
|
Telephone number. Date. To whom it may concern. Dear Sirs, We, the undersigned, having parental responsibility for [insert child's/children(s) full name(s) here] consent to [his/her/their] name(s) being changed to [insert new full name(s) here]. Yours faithfully, Both
parents to sign and |
Fully
completed example of Letter 1
(copy
and paste the example text into a word processor and
substitute the example names and details with your own)
|
45
Nosuch Street, 25th May 2003. To whom it may concern. Dear Sirs, We, the undersigned, having parental responsibility for Mary Anne SMITH and John William SMITH consent to their names being changed to Mary Anne JONES and John William JONES. Yours faithfully, Mother
to sign here Father
to sign here |
Letter
2
Sole
parental responsibility
To
be completed and signed by the mother only, that is, the person
who has sole parental responsibility. If your child is 16 or
17 years of age, you also need to send us a further letter of
consent (see letter 3 below)
|
Telephone number. Date. To whom it may concern. Dear Sirs, I, the undersigned, having sole parental responsibility for [insert child's/children(s) current full name(s) here] consent to [his/her/their] name(s) being changed to [insert new full name(s) here]. If
you live in England or Wales add: If
you live in Scotland add: If
you live in Northern Ireland add (births registered before 15
April 2002): If
you live in Northern Ireland add (births registered on or after
15 April 2002): Yours faithfully, Mother
to sign and |
Fully completed example of Letter 2
(for a mother living in England or Wales)
|
London, SW25 4DP. Tel: 020 9876 5432 25th May 2003. To whom it may concern. Dear Sirs, I, the undersigned, having sole parental responsibility for Mary Anne SMITH and John William SMITH consent to their names being changed to Mary Anne JONES and John William JONES. I confirm that I was not married to my children's father at birth or subsequently and no other person has acquired parental responsibility by agreement or by court order. Yours faithfully, Mother
to sign here |
Letter 3
Child
is 16 or 17 years of age
To
be signed by the child (not the parents). If you are having to
send this letter of consent to us, you will also need to send
us either letter 1 or 2 above.
|
telephone number. Date. To whom it may concern. Dear Sirs, I, the undersigned, being [insert age here] years of age, consent to my name being changed from [insert child's current full name here] to [insert new full name here]. Yours faithfully, Child
to sign and print |
Fully
completed example of Letter 3
(copy
and paste the example text into a word processor and
substitute the example names and details with your own)
|
45
Nosuch Street, 25th May 2003. To whom it may concern. Dear Sirs, I, the undersigned, being 16 years of age, consent to my name being changed from Mary Anne SMITH to Mary Anne JONES. Yours faithfully, Child to sign here Mary Anne Smith |
Letter 4
Absent
father
The
following letter is an example of what we require from the parent
with custody of a child to change the child's name where the
parents were married when the child was born, or subsequent,
but the other parent's consent cannot be obtained because their
whereabouts is not known. This example letter below is from a
mother who does not know the whereabouts of the father and it
contains the minimum amount of information about what steps have
been taken to contact the absent father. Please note, this letter cannot
be too long.
(copy and paste the example text into a word processor and
substitute the example names and details with your own)
|
45
Nosuch Street, 25th May 2003. To whom it may concern. Dear Sirs, I, the undersigned, having parental responsibility for Mary Anne SMITH and John William SMITH consent to their names being changed to Mary Anne JONES and John William JONES. Although I was married when my children were born, I am unable to obtain the consent of the father because for the last four years I have not known of his whereabouts. I have written to the father's last known address but I have not had a reply. I have also asked several relatives if they know how I can contact him but they do not know. The Child Support Agency have also not been able to locate him. Yours faithfully, Mother to sign here Rebecca Anne Smith |
| Change your name online now |
|
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Whilst every care has been taken in the compilation of the information provided on this website, UK Deed Poll Service will not be held liable or responsible for any loss, damage or other inconvenience caused as a result of any inaccuracy or error within the pages of this website. Reproduction of any part of this website's content is illegal without our permission. |