The Parental Responsibility Agreement (PRA) is the second pillar of a consent-based child maintenance system. It ensures that legal and financial responsibility for a child is shared by mutual agreement — not assumed automatically or imposed unfairly.
✅ What Is It?
The PRA is a legally binding agreement signed by two contributors who both consent to become responsible parents. It replaces the current model of automatic assignment and ensures that responsibility is earned through intent, commitment, and consent — not just biology.
📝 How It Works
- Signed at any stage — before conception, during pregnancy, or after birth — once both parties have declared their intent to parent. The PRA formalises shared caregiving and financial responsibilities, ensuring clarity and cooperation from the start.
- Registered digitally or in writing and stored securely in a national register.
- Can be completed at points like birth registration, family courts, antenatal services, or government portals.
- Outlines caregiving roles, financial responsibilities, and provisions for future change or review.
- If no PRA is signed, caregiving responsibilities are not enforceable — but financial responsibility still applies if a Declaration of Intent to Parent has been made.
⚖️ Why It Matters
- Prevents people from being forced into lifelong obligations without consent.
- Recognises and protects those who do step up voluntarily.
- Offers legal clarity for families, courts, and the state.
- Respects autonomy while supporting genuine responsibility.
- Helps prevent disputes and prioritises co-operative parenting.
💡 Real Impact
Right now, someone can be left caring for a child alone — or excluded entirely from the child’s life — with no clear agreement in place. The Parental Responsibility Agreement (PRA) ensures that shared caregiving responsibilities are mutually agreed, legally recognised, and intentionally formalised.
It turns confusion into clarity — and conflict into co-operation.