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Parent and guardian proxy access for children under 16

Information:

You can only get online access to the GP services of a child aged under 16 if you are their parent or guardian with legal parental responsibility.

Find out more about parental responsibility on GOV.UK.

The child I want proxy access for is 16 or older

When a young person is 16, they are considered to be an adult. You may be able to access GP services on their behalf if they want you to be their proxy, or if they have a condition that means they cannot manage their health and care on their own.

How to get parent and guardian proxy access

If you care for a child aged under 16, and you have legal parental responsibility for them, you can usually get proxy access by asking the GP surgery to set this up. You may need to fill in a form.

Before giving you access, the GP surgery may need to check:

  • ID for you and the child, for example passports
  • documents that help to prove you have parental responsibility, for example a birth certificate
  • with anyone else that shares parental responsibility with you
  • for safeguarding issues
  • that the child consents to your access (agrees to it) or lacks capacity to consent, if they are aged 11 or over

You do not have to live at the same address as the child to have access.

You can have proxy access for more than 1 child, and a child can have more than 1 proxy acting on their behalf.

Children's rights, capacity and consent

Children have the same legal rights over their data as adults. The GP surgery must get the child's consent before giving access to their online GP services, if the child is able to understand and make an informed decision. This is called having capacity. 

Children aged 11 or over are usually considered to have the capacity to consent, or refuse access, unless for example they have a medical condition or learning disability that affects their understanding.  

My child will not have capacity to make an informed decision

If you think your child will not be able to understand what it means to give you access to their online GP services, you can tell your GP surgery.

The GP surgery will give access based on the best interests of the child. This will usually mean having a parent or guardian acting on the child's behalf. 

When your online access will stop

Parent and guardian access ends when a child is 16. If your child wants or needs you to help manage their GP services when they are 16 or over, your GP surgery can set it up again.

Most GP surgeries also have an automatic cut-off age between 11 and 14, where online parent and guardian access is stopped to protect an older child's confidentiality.

If your access stops, you can ask your GP surgery to restore it.

Your GP surgery will usually check the child agrees to your access (consents) first.

You can tell your GP surgery in advance if you think your child will not be able to understand what it means to give you access to their online GP services (called lacking capacity).

When your online access ends, you will still be able to manage your child's health and care at the GP surgery in the same way you do now.

NHS trial to apply for proxy access online

Some GP surgeries are trialling a new NHS service which you can use to apply for proxy access online. Both you and the person you're applying about must be registered at the same GP surgery.

GP surgeries using this service

If your GP surgery is using this service, you can apply for parent and guardian proxy access online.

Apply for access to a child's GP services

Page last reviewed: 7 March 2024
Next review due: 7 March 2025