Sex offenders will no longer be entitled to parental responsibility for children conceived through rape, under new measures proposed in parliament.
In a government-backed amendment to the Victims and Courts Bill, due to come before parliament on Monday 27 October, parental responsibility will automatically be restricted where a child is born of rape.
New reforms will also see parental responsibility restricted when a parent is convicted of serious sex offences against any child, not just their own.
It will mean sex offenders will no longer be able to intervene in decisions about medical care, schooling and overseas travel.
Bolsover MP Natalie Fleet has been instrumental in campaigning for the change; at the age of 15 she was groomed by an older man and conceived a child through rape.
“Men are using every tool they can to keep women quiet, and one of the tools they’re using is the family court,” she said.
“Anybody that’s been anywhere near it knows how horrendous it is. It is traumatising. It is just frankly horrendous, and it’s been left in a mess. So we’re doing everything we can to make it far easier.
“This law is saying we’re putting the needs of survivors above the needs of rapists,” she added. “My God, the fact that we’d ever even have to do that is ridiculous in 2025, but I’m thrilled that we are doing that.”
After being elected last summer, Fleet took it upon herself to become a voice for survivors of rape, particularly those who had conceived children after being assaulted.
“I just think it’s disgusting that we’ve got to the point where we’ve allowed children to be the only proceeds of crime that criminals can have lifelong access to,” she said.
Fleet set out to achieve three things: to found a charity to support women who conceive children through rape, to have some acknowledgment of the issue on the NHS website, and to change the law.
“When I initially came [to parliament], I didn’t want to achieve this, because rape is so normalised that I didn’t even realise it was part of my story,” she said.
“It wasn’t until Westminster journalists started asking me about it and taking an interest in my background, in a way that hadn’t been taken at home, by health visitors, teachers – anybody really, because it was so normal, because my story is so normal in my constituency.”
“As soon as I realised that rape was part of my story,” she said, she thought “oh my goodness, I’ve got to change this”.
“I genuinely thought that the easiest thing would be to get it on the NHS website,” she said. “The second easiest thing would be to set up a charity. And the third and most difficult thing, that would take years and years and years of campaigning, would be to get the law changed.”
Under the new reforms, restriction of parental responsibility will happen immediately after sentencing, removing the necessity to apply through the family court.
In cases where it has not been established in criminal proceedings that the child was conceived by rape, crown courts will be mandated to refer the case to the relevant local authority, if the court considers this may be the case.
The local authority will then have six months in which to obtain the consent of the mother for them to initiate family court proceedings.
“These reforms mark a crucial step forward in restoring faith in our justice system,” David Lammy, the deputy prime minister, said. “Automatically restricting parental responsibility in cases of rape where it has led to the birth of a child and serious child sexual offences sends a clear message: the rights and safety of children come first.
“This Government is committed to standing up for victims and ensuring that those who commit the most vile crimes against children are never in a position to cause further harm.”
“These reforms will shield both mothers and children from the heinous actions of predatory parents as part of our mission to halve violence against women and girls in a decade,” Alex Davies-Jones, minister for victims and tackling Violence against women and girls, added.
“I’m proud to support these amendments, which build on the tireless campaigning of Natalie Fleet MP, Baroness Harman and Jess Asato MP, who have been unwavering in their advocacy for the protection of children and women.”
“I’m still pinching myself that we’ve got a government that took a normal person from an area like mine and brought me into government, and then said, you can use your platform to improve the lives of the women you represent,” Fleet said.
“That’s absolutely incredible. That’s unreal. That’s amazing. And I am really, really, just really happy. It’s definitely the best day to be an MP, when you get something like this through.”
In a separate move, the government has also said it will repeal a law under the Children Act 1989, which leads the family court to presume that contact with both parents is normally in the best interests of a child.
The Ministry of Justice has said the change, which has been welcomed by domestic abuse campaigners, will be made “when parliamentary time allows.”
