‘I had to pay thousands for my daughter to get the same level of protection that was being given, for free, to every child in the UK but her’
A mum who spent her life savings to protect her child from her sex offender ex-husband has criticised the UK Government over a new law. The Victims and Courts Bill would automatically strip parental rights from some criminals — but critics say it has been heavily watered down.
Last year Harriet Harman — then a Labour MP, now a peer — tabled a legislative amendment which would have seen anyone who has raped a child “automatically deprived” of their parental rights.
But the wording of the newly-released draft bill is different — with an automatic restriction of parental rights that would only apply to offenders who have sexually abused their own child. They also must have been sentenced to four or more years in jail.
If you have parental responsibility for a child but do not live with them, it means the other parent must include you when making important decisions about their lives, like on issues of health, education and living arrangements.
Baroness Harman made the proposal after reading about the case of Bethan (not her real name), who had applied for a Cardiff Family Court order to strip her ex-husband of parental responsibility after he was jailed for paedophile offences. The convictions cannot be reported for legal reasons but did not involve their daughter.
Although Bethan successfully obtained the order, she had to spend £34,000 in legal fees and put her career on hold in the process. She was overjoyed last year when she thought the new legislation would prevent others experiencing the same nightmare — but she was appalled by the wording of the draft bill.
Bethan said: “The original law put forward by Harriet Harman rightly proposed that any parent convicted of raping any child should experience automatic and mandatory removal of their parental rights, ensuring that their children would be immediately safeguarded.”
She added: “Rather than being protected, it puts the children of paedophiles at risk of serious harm, as the revised version deprives them of any legal safeguards until after at least one of them has suffered serious, preventable harm at the hands of the unsafe parent.”
In Bethan’s case, she had to pay for a transcript of her ex-husband’s sentencing and then take it to a solicitor to understand the implications for her child. She learned the judge had made a lifelong sexual harm prevention order — but had included an exemption allowing him to apply through the family courts for access to the daughter.
Explaining why the exemption prompted her to go to the family court, Bethan said: “I had to pay thousands for [my daughter] to get the same level of protection that was being given, for free, to every child in the UK but her.
“Going to family court was incredibly challenging financially. I pulled my daughter out of childcare where she was settled, used every penny of my savings, gave up the lease on my home and moved in with family, and even then I could only afford half of the £34,000 legal costs. Had it not been for family members stepping in and paying the other half, my daughter could not have been protected and would probably have ended up being seriously sexually abused.”
Bethan fears the new bill will leave parents in similar situations having to fend for themselves. The same concern has been voiced by Right to Equality, a non-profit led by the barrister Dr Charlotte Proudman.
“In 2024, the Conservative government prepared legislation [after Harriet Harman’s proposal] to strip all child rapists of their parental responsibility,” said Right to Equality in a statement.
“In this Bill, the Labour government have decided it should only apply to children who were directly abused by their parent or carer, whose case results in a conviction and where the offender was sentenced to imprisonment for four years or more. In practice, few victims will meet these criteria.
“Right to Equality believes that all children of child sex offenders should be given protections so that they and their family have the right to go on holiday, to change their name, or to move house or school, without interference from a sexual predator.”
Alex Davies-Jones, minister for victims and violence against women and girls, said: “I do recognise the concerns raised by victims and campaigners, and will continue working closely with them to ensure the law is as strong and protective as it needs to be.”
She added: “These changes will, for the first time, introduce an automatic suspension of parental responsibility for offenders who sexually abuse their own child and receive a prison sentence of four years or more — removing the need for victims to go through court to secure this.”
You can read our full court report on Bethan’s case here.