Need help with my rights" as a mum.

[greatbigmess]

Long story short, I have an 17 week old girl. I no longer live with the babies father. He moved out when I was 7 months pregnant because he "didn't want to do the family thing". He crashed with a girl from work and I've found out in the last week that he's been sleeping with her since (or maybe before, who knows?) despite moving back in with me and the baby for the first few weeks trying to "make things work"

Anyway. He's on the babies birth certificate. I would like to take the baby to Glastonbury Festival (I go every year) and my ex says I can only take the baby if it means he can get to see her while he is there too. I don't really want to see him while I'm there as Glasto is like my little holiday and I just don't want him stressing me out in the way he does when we see him at home.

My ex smokes weed and drinks heavily, so I doubt he will even be fit to look after the baby. But do I have the right to take the baby and say we will see him when we get back in 6 days time.

He doesn't see the baby everyday at the moment he works long and different hours and likes to go out on his weekends so usually sees the baby for few hours over the weekend and some evenings if he can get out of work before 7pm.

Any advice would be great as I feel like I've been hit over the head with all this, not at all how I expected to be raising my baby girl with a man I've been with for years. Incase this reads like a teenager that got pregnant on impulse i'm in my early 30s and we own a house together! Please don't flame me!

The only way he could stop you would be if he had a court arranged access agreement and your trip fell on his access time. As it all sounds quite casual at the moment you can go where you want with your child. If at some point down the line you have a more regular arrangement then he too can go where he likes during his access time (within the UK).

If he is named on the birth certificate the father has Parental Responsibility. That means you both have equal responsibility and rights to carry those responsibility so important arrangements such as living and contact arrangements, changing a child's name, taking children abroad permanently, educational and medical decisions need to be agreed.

However each parent can act unilaterally on every day matters when the child is in their care and you don't need consent to take the baby on holiday in the UK in "your" time, although you may need to negotiate a change in any arrangements if the holiday clashes with regular contact.

STIDW put it much more succinctly than I did. Regarding the festival if he's going anyway and you stayed at home he wouldn't see his dd anyhow. I wouldn't mention it again and just go.

Are you in the UK? Is Glastonbury a safe place for a baby?

You don't have any rights 'as a mum' merely responsibilities as per the children's act

I think you both need to grow up.

26Point2Miles, yes it's perfectly safe, I've been going for years and my friends take their children (eldest 11 youngest 5 months last year) it's a massive place most people don't really understand what it's like really, I don't do much of the "main" stuff and stick to smaller stages and we sleep in a caravan.

Thanks you BohemianRaptor and STIDW, I thought that was the case. I am keen for things not to get nasty so most of the time I just sort of stick to his plans re timings of visits etc. But so long as I know I can go without breaking the law I will.

Thank you both.