Residence in English family law

Residence is a term used to refer to not always similar concepts in various parts of English law including taxation, immigration, and family law. The remainder of this article deals exclusively with English family law. See residence in English law for disambiguation.

In family law, the Court can order a Residence Order of the Family Court under section 8 of The Children Act 1989 following the breakdown of a marriage and determining where the children are to live and with whom. The order can be sole or joint, and if joint, it can be made to a couple regardless whether they are married. If a residence order is granted, this automatically gives him, her, or them parental responsibility for the child(ren) which will continue until the order terminates (usually this will be until the child(ren) reach their sixteenth birthday unless there are exceptional circumstances justifying a longer period).

The following can make an application for a Residence Order under section 8 of The Children Act 1989 as of right:

If an applicant cannot apply for the Order as of right, (e.g. they are wider family members such as grandparents etc. who wish to seek orders for their grandchildren), they can make an application to the court seeking leave to issue the application. In deciding whether to grant leave, the court will consider, amongst other things:

As a matter of public policy, the courts have always operated under the doctrine of parens patriae to make the best interests of any children their first and paramount concern. From time to time, this doctrine has been included in statutes, the most recent relevant version being section 1 of The Children Act 1989 which requires the court to consider the "welfare checklist". Before making a section 8 order (i.e. a residence order) the court must consider:

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