does a father have the right to know where his children reside?

[madmumof05]

My daughter has just moved to another part of the country and her sons father is demanding to know her address
he is somewhat a bully and although he has never(to my knowledge) assaulted her he has a very threatening demeanor
she has agreed to him seeing his sons at a designated place ie a contact centre or the such but he is demanding to know her home address which she would rather him not know (he has been known to turn up at her previous address whenever he felt like it)
any advice is greatly appreciated

[Bobbisox]

as long as she is allowing him to see his kids I would of thought her address is her business only ?

[ummmm]

How old are the children?

Fathers have automatic parental responsibility for any child born after 2003. I believe that gives him the right to know where his children live, what school they attend, doctors appointments etc etc.

[sandyRoe]

If your daughter has agreed to meetings for father and child at a contact centre then she clearly doesn't want him(the father) to know her new address.
I don't see why he has any right to know it.

[flip_flop]

I would say he has a right to know it, sandyRoe, because that is where his children live.

[B00]

To be honest, id want to know where my children, when not with me ,were living. Surely that's a basic parental right?

If I was your daughter, i'd try and talk to her ex, try to be as amicable as possible with him. I know it's probably easier said than done, but surely she must sympathise a bit how hard it must be for him? It would also make life that little bit easier and better for their son if he can grow up knowing his parents were being 'adult' about their situation.

[Ankou]

do you share parental responsibility ? in legal terms, if you do, then he has the right to know.

parental responsibility should not be confused with parental rghts. he will still have the right to have access means for emergencies (phone numbers and a known contact address such as your parents).

[ummmm]

I would demand to know....

I do think legally he has a right to know.

[cathfromsaron]

she merely needs to give a 'contact' address, which can be you, and she doesn't need to see him! BUT unless the court has ordered the contact she doesn't need to hand the kids over under these circumstances! her local womens' aid will give free advice and support! xx

[cathfromsaron]

and to my mind he gave up any 'rights' when he allegedly behaved like a bully! xx

[Hopkirk]

All he has to do is ask the kids where they live, so what is the point of refusing to tell him?

Surely it is better to try to have reasonable dialogue, rather than build walls that antagonise.

[madmumof05]

Thank you for all the responses
She is seeing a solicitor on Monday

[pink-kittens]

"Fathers have automatic parental responsibility for any child born after 2003"

Not strictly true - only if their name is on the birth certificate

I'm not sure of the legal standing about knowing where the child resides but from a personal experience an ex of mine was told he must tell the mother where the children lived (he had full residence she had visitation rights)
Unless the father has been violent towards the children or abused them in some way I cant see any reason why he doesn't have a right to know where they live

Laughable that someone would think just because he has 'been a bully' means his children have no right to see him or that the father has no rights.

[pink-kittens]

Missed a bit form my first sentence - From December 1st 2003 ..........

[Skyline D]

cathfromsaron "and to my mind he gave up any 'rights' when he allegedly behaved like a bully! xx "

Good God I wouldn't want to see you on a jury anytime soon! An anonymous user name on a website suggests he might be a "bully" and though there's no knowledge whatsoever of any violence he is quite "threatening" and that's you immediately stripped the man of any parental rights at all. It's a good job we don't have outdated concepts like evidence and conviction in this country any more. Oh, wait, we do.................