To not have anyone to sign passport?

[PumpkinP]

I am having trouble with thinking who can sign for me and my children’s passports. I am an introvert and have no friends, family limited, but obviously can’t sign, not friends with the neighbours. What can I do? I’m not working atm either so no manager etc

(and most people in work work for VAT registered companies anyway, so their managers and HR will be on the list).

There's no list of people who can sign which has names on it

Do you go to the library with the children? A librarian would be able to sign if they have their own passport.

What did you do before you had children? Do you have ex-colleagues who would meet the requirements?

Do any of the children go to Scouts or Guides, or any other groups with a clear leader?

No the individuals aren’t on a list, but “manager or

Whoops “manager or Personnel officer of a VAT registered company” is on the list.

Any of the school parents? A friend of your sister’s? You don’t need to know them well. I know it must seem daunting but as a professional who is often asked to sign these things I for one really don’t mind being asked as I know it can be difficult to find someone. As long as I can meet the requirements on the form I will do it.

I also think that the kind of isolation you describe isn’t healthy. Being introverted doesn’t mean you have to be a hermit with no friends. It’s not fair on your children either. With young kids you’re in the best position to try and change it, going to toddler groups etc, it’s harder when they’re older.

My childminder signed ours - would that be an option (childminder/nursery worker/after school care)

I’ve signed a fair few over the years because my job is on the list. So has my colleagues. A couple of them have mentioned that HMPO did follow up with them to check.

The list is not exhaustive. Think the key is that the counter-signer has to be someone whom they are able to trace easily if they want to double check.

...they don’t want teachers giving out their home addresses and passport numbers on the forms

When I've signed passports you could put home or work address.
HV's in our area aren't allowed to sign them now because people were making appointments just to get passports signed.

The trouble with some of the advice on here is that while some people have clearly had passports signed by people not on the list - people bigging up their job titles or being honest with ‘stay at home mum’, if you did this too it could be rejected and then presumably you would have to start the application (and pay?) all over again.
It must be tough if you don’t know many people but it’s not elitist. Loads of people are limited company directors, for example.
It’s also perfectly understandable that some people might not want to sign. I was asked to do it for a colleague who although I liked I had known for less than 2 years. I refused as I would never lie on an official document.

One of my dd's teachers agreed, but then baulked when he found out he had put his own passport number on the form why?

I remember it being harder, I'm sure years ago it had to be a professional person and upstanding person of the community wasn't included on the form.

Good luck OP, I'd try the school.

Worst case can’t you book an appointment at the passport office and take the children, birth certificates etc.

Worst case can’t you book an appointment at the passport office and take the children, birth certificates etc

You would have thought so, but I think this came up before and you can't. So if you don't know people you really are a bit stuffed.

It doesn't matter if they have an expired passport, as long as they have held a UK Passport they can sign it

A pp has already picked up on this but to emphasise, you have to put in the passport number of your current passport. So it can't have expired.

Looking at that list, it's pretty elitist.

No, it really isn't. It includes company directors. These days, plumbers, joiners, even window cleaners & odd job men trade through their own limited companies, so most tradespersons would be able to countersign, and you must have a near neighbour who is either a tradesperson, teacher, civil servant, nurse, or whatever.

Well wasn’t expecting some many comments, especially about my social life. There’s always posts on here from people saying they have no friends! it’s not really that uncommon. I have tried with the school mums originally but got nowhere so I gave up trying a long time ago. Not everyone is friendly believe it or not, my children don’t go on play dates, the oldest 2 have disabilities and don’t get invited anywhere. As for the neighbours I never see them.

Op I was in the same situation. In the end My dcs headteacher did mine and theirs. I emailed the school to ask and offered to donate £10 to the school fund which was warmly received. I left the forms at the office and picked them up the next day.

One of your children's teachers will do it for you. They'll know your situation.

If you do it online then the professional can confirm via email, so they need all your details but you just need their name and email address.

The list isn't elitist, it has to be a British person who has had their identity verified by a professional. If nobody knows who Sally up the road is, there's no point in a verification and you'd just be handing out child passports to anyone. It's quite unusual to not have an employer, a landlord, a child's teacher, a child activity leader, a local shop owner, a social worker or anyone else at all in your life, and concerning if 4 kids are being brought up to think that this level of isolation is normal. It sounds like social anxiety rather than being introverted, would you consider discussing it with your GP?

What an odd list.

So an army officer can sign but not a corporal. Yet a civil servant can sign - who might only be an admin assistant on 18k, way less money and responsibility than a corporal.

So an army officer can sign but not a corporal. Yet a civil servant can sign - who might only be an admin assistant on 18k, way less money and responsibility than a corporal.

No. It says right at the start of the list that it is just examples of who can sign.

@PlomBear it doesn't say the queen can sign but I'm sure she can you want them to list every single possibly job title?

Anyone in a more senior professional position than the ones they listed can clearly sign

One of your children's teachers will do it for you.
They don't have to but might if they have known you for two years or more and you ask nicely.

concerning if 4 kids are being brought up to think that this level of isolation is normal

For goodness sake it is not abnormal not to be best friends with your kids schoolmates' parents. I wasn't. The difference was I worked so I knew people that way. Even if your kids do activities the leaders and other parents might not have known you for two years.

In answer to the question about why it has to be a professional - it’s not intended to be elitist (I know lots of things are, but this isn’t). It is because professional people are governed by their professional body (Bar Council for barristers, General Medical Council for doctors, etc, et) and any act (even if not a crime) that calls the profession into disrepute (such as not being accurate when countersigning a passport application) can see a person called before their professional body and fined or suspended or even disbarred. So there is a strong incentive to be accurate about it. There is also the fact that it is a fairly effective filter (rather than having to have a DBS check on everyone who counter signs) as anyone with a valid practising certificate in their profession will not have serious ‘unspent’ crimes against them.

Then they should just say “military personnel” rather than list officers and petty officers / warrant officers.