How can a child's name be changed?
The process for changing a child’s name depends on the child’s age and where the child lives.
Under 16’s in England and Wales
Children under 16 cannot formally change their own names. Only those with parental responsibility can change their name. For more information on who has to consent to a child’s name change, see ‘Who needs to give permission for a child’s name change?’ below.
A child’s name can be changed by making a:
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statutory declaration (ie a formal statement of intention to change a name, signed under oath in the presence of an authorised person like a lawyer) - this is the easiest way to change a child’s name and most organisations will accept a statutory declaration as proof of a name change
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deed poll - this is required for official documents such as passports or driving licences. Specific wording must be used to create a deed poll. Deed polls can be:
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enrolled - this is a self-declaration of name change that is put on the public record by enrolling it at the Royal Courts of Justice. Enrolling a deed poll for a child’s name change requires all relevant forms to be completed and sent to the King’s Bench Division together with the application fee
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unenrolled - this is a self-declaration of name change that is not a public record
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For more information on changing a child’s name by statutory declaration or deed poll, see the government’s guidance.
The child’s birth certificate can typically only be changed to correct a spelling mistake. Even if a name is changed by deed poll, the name on the birth certificate will remain the same, as this is considered a historical record. However, there are certain limited circumstances in which a child’s birth certificate may be changed. For example, if the parents give the child a different first name and the birth was registered in the preceding 12 months. For more information, see the Deed Poll Office’s guidance on changing a name on a birth certificate.
Under 16’s in Scotland
Children under 16 cannot formally change their name; only those with parental responsibility can. A relevant party needs to consent to the child’s name change. For more information, see ‘Who needs to give permission for a child’s name change?’ below.
A child’s name can be changed in one of the following ways:
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using Form 21 - an application to record a change to the first name(s) of a child under the age of 12 months
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using Form 23 - an application to record a change to the first name(s) of a child under the age of 16 years
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using Form 23 - an application to record a change to the last name(s) of a child under the age of 16 years
These applications must be sent to the National Records of Scotland, Change of Name Unit, together with the applicable fee.
For more information, including current application fees, see the National Records of Scotland’s guidance.
16- and 17-year-olds
Anyone in England, Wales, or Scotland over the age of 16 can change their name informally as long as it is not for a criminal purpose.
In England and Wales, children who are aged at least 16 can choose to change their name in the same way as adults, by deed poll or with a Statutory declaration of name change. However, only adults can make an enrolled deed poll.
In Scotland, under the Children (Scotland) Act 1995, those aged at least 16 can choose to change their name in the same way as adults, either by deed poll (where they were not born or adopted in Scotland) or by making a statutory declaration by filling out Form 24. Deed polls operate as they do in England and Wales. Form 24, along with the relevant fee, must be sent to the National Records of Scotland, Change of Name Unit.
Who needs to give permission for a child’s name change?
The people who need to consent to a child’s name change depend on the child’s age.
Under 16’s
In England and Wales, all those with parental responsibility (normally a child’s parents) need to give their consent to change a child's name. If more than one person has parental responsibility, they must all agree on the name change. Even if a parent (eg a child’s father) doesn’t have parental responsibility, it is considered good practice to consult them before changing the child’s name.
In Scotland, only one person with parental responsibility needs to give their consent to change a child’s name. The person consenting to the child’s name change must, however, make a written statement confirming that they consulted everyone with parental responsibility and, as far as practical, took their views and the views of the child into account.
16- and 17-year-olds
16 and 17-year-olds can provide their own consent to a change to their name. Those aged 16 and above can typically change their own names without requiring permission from anyone.
Note that, in England and Wales, an enrolled deed poll can only be made by someone over the age of 18.
For more information, read Children’s rights and responsibilities.
What if consent is not given?
In England and Wales, if not all of the individuals who hold parental responsibility consent to a child’s proposed name change, an application can be made to the courts for a specific issue order.
In Scotland, if someone with parental responsibility doesn’t want to (or cannot) consult all other parties with parental responsibility about a proposed name change, an application can be made to the courts for a specific issue order.
In deciding to grant a specific issue order, the court would need to be persuaded that the change of name is in the child's best interests.
Applying for a court order should be a last resort. If you want to change your child’s name you should first consider all other alternatives and try to reach an agreement with the other parties. For example, try reaching a compromise by proposing a double-barrelled last name instead of removing or exchanging a last name.
For more information on applying for a court order to change your child’s name, see the Deed Poll Office’s guidance on applying for a court order.
What happens if there is an absent parent?
In England and Wales, if one of the people with parental responsibility is absent (eg if they’ve not been involved in the child’s life and/or not been in contact for a long time), their consent will not necessarily be required to change their child's name. Similarly, in Scotland, if one of the people with parental responsibility is absent, they may not be consulted on the child’s name change.
When someone with parental responsibility is absent, the person wishing to change the child’s name can apply to the courts for a specific issue order. However, they must first take all reasonable steps to contact the absent party about the proposed name change. Evidence of these steps may need to be provided to the courts.
Generally speaking, the longer the party has been absent the more likely the courts are to grant the order to change the child’s name.
How many times can a child’s name be changed?
In England and Wales
In England and Wales, a child’s first name can only be changed once on a birth certificate. Otherwise, there are no limits on how often a child’s name can be changed.
In Scotland
In Scotland, a child’s name change can only be recorded a certain number of times. For children:
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under the age of 16 - only one change of first name(s) and one change of last name(s) may be recorded
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over the age of 16 - one change of first name(s) and up to 3 changes of last name(s) may be recorded. However, a 5-year period must pass between successive last name changes
For these purposes, first name(s) also include any middle name(s).
To learn more about the key legal issues parents should be aware of, read Parents’ rights and responsibilities.
