Child Abandonment: The Law and What the Carer Can Do

Part of: Child Custody Specialists

Child abandonment is leaving a child without the care they need, with no proper arrangement for someone else to provide it. In England and Wales it can be a criminal offence. For the family left behind, though, the questions are practical and immediate: who can make decisions for the child, who pays, what the school and GP will accept, and what happens if the parent comes back. The short answer is that the parent who left still has parental responsibility, the person now caring for the child can do what is reasonable to keep them safe, and the family court can give that person proper authority. This guide covers the law in England and Wales.

Caring for the child right now? You can act today, and a court order can then give you lasting authority. Check in three questions whether you can apply, or book a free initial consultation.

What counts as child abandonment under UK law?

Two criminal offences deal directly with abandoning a child, and both apply in England and Wales. Neither sets a minimum period of absence. What matters is the effect on the child.

• Children and Young Persons Act 1933, section 1. A person commits the offence if they are aged 16 or over, have responsibility for a child under 16, and wilfully assaults, ill-treats, neglects, abandons or exposes them “in a manner likely to cause” unnecessary suffering or injury to health. The suffering can be physical or psychological. A court can convict even if someone else stepped in and prevented the harm.
• Offences Against the Person Act 1861, section 27. This older offence covers unlawfully abandoning or exposing a child under two, where the child’s life is endangered or their health has been, or is likely to be, permanently injured (s.27).

Section 1 also treats a parent as having neglected a child if they fail to provide adequate food, clothing, medical aid or lodging, or fail to take steps to get it provided. So the criminal law looks at the danger created, not simply at a parent who has moved out. A parent who leaves the family home while the child stays safely with the other parent does not, on those words alone, fit the offence. The family-law consequences below still follow.

What is the punishment for child abandonment in England and Wales?

On conviction on indictment in the Crown Court, the section 1 offence carries a fine, imprisonment of up to 14 years, or both. The offence can also be tried in the magistrates’ court, where the sentencing powers are lower. The 14-year maximum was substituted by the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 (s.122) and applies to offences committed on or after 28 June 2022. Before that date the maximum was 10 years. Whether anyone is prosecuted is a matter for the police and the Crown Prosecution Service. It is separate from the family court, which decides where the child lives and who holds parental responsibility.

Does child abandonment end the parent’s parental responsibility?

No. Parental responsibility means all the rights, duties, powers, responsibilities and authority a parent has by law (Children Act 1989, s.3(1)). A parent who has it may not surrender or transfer any part of it. They may arrange for some or all of it to be met by one or more other people, but that arrangement does not affect their liability for any failure to meet it (s.2(9) and (11)).

That has two consequences for the person left caring. A note saying “I am leaving the children with you” does not give you parental responsibility. And the parent who left keeps the legal authority to come back and make decisions, including taking the child, unless a court order says otherwise.

Left caring for an abandoned child: what can you do today?

More than most people expect, even when the child abandonment is recent and nothing is in writing. Section 3(5) of the Children Act 1989 lets a person who has care of a child, but no parental responsibility, do what is reasonable in all the circumstances to safeguard or promote the child’s welfare. That covers feeding, housing and protecting the child, and getting urgent help when they need it.

Who to tell after child abandonment: school, GP and the local authority

• School. For education law, “parent” includes any person who has care of the child (Education Act 1996, s.576). Tell the school who you are and that the child is living with you.
• Health. In an emergency, section 3(5) supports you getting the child treated. For planned treatment, a GP or hospital may ask for the consent of someone with parental responsibility, which is often the moment carers realise they need an order. Our guide to medical treatment decisions for children explains who can consent.
• If you are not a relative. The law defines a relative as a grandparent, brother, sister, uncle, aunt or step-parent (s.105). If you are a friend or neighbour caring for a child under 16 (under 18 if the child is disabled) in your home for 28 days or more, or you intend to, that is private fostering (s.66), and the local authority must be notified (Children (Private Arrangements for Fostering) Regulations 2005, reg. 3, and in Wales the 2006 Welsh regulations, reg. 3). Our kinship care guide covers private fostering arrangements.
• If nobody can care for the child. In England, the local authority must provide accommodation for a child in need in its area who appears to need it because they have been lost or abandoned (Children Act 1989, s.20(1)). In Wales the equivalent duty is in section 76 of the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014. Our guide to section 20 accommodation explains what it means for the family.

Which court orders give the carer parental responsibility?

Section 3(5) is a stopgap. When child abandonment turns out to be more than a few days and the parent is not coming back soon, the family court can give you authority that the school, the GP and the parent all have to respect. Each route below has its own guide.

Do you need the court’s permission to apply?

Some carers can apply for a “lives with” order without first asking the court’s permission. They include anyone the child has lived with for at least three years, anyone with the consent of everyone who has parental responsibility, and a relative the child has lived with for at least one year immediately before the application (s.10(5) and (5B)). The three years need not be continuous. They must not have begun more than five years, or ended more than three months, before the application (s.10(10)). Everyone else asks for permission first. Grandparents have their own guide on how grandparents can gain parental responsibility.

From our casework. We assisted a grandparent who had taken on a grandchild’s day-to-day care during a period of significant change in the family, advising on the written notice to the local authority and helping them prepare for its assessment; in that case the court made a special guardianship order. Every case turns on its own facts and evidence.

Child abandonment and child support: who pays for the child?

The parent who left. Walking out does not end a parent’s duty to contribute. Under the Child Support Act 1991, a parent who does not live in the same household as the child is a “non-resident parent” where the child has their home with a “person with care”. That person must be someone the child lives with who usually provides day-to-day care, and it can be a grandparent, another relative or a friend (s.3). If both parents live elsewhere, both can be non-resident parents. Our child maintenance specialists can explain how an application works.

What happens if the parent comes back?

It depends almost entirely on whether there is a court order. A parent who returns after child abandonment is still the child’s parent in law.

If you are the parent trying to resume care from a relative, our guide to getting your child back from grandparents covers that side.

After child abandonment: can you apply to court? Check in three questions

Child abandonment: frequently asked questions

General information about the law in England and Wales, not advice on your circumstances.